Beware the Air
by Lumosthecat
Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late.
1. Chapter 1

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late. _

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds. _

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"Emily said that she would meet us at the restaurant at 12:30. Larry? Are you ready to go?" Charlie Eppes asked as he popped his head into the doorway.

Looking up from the chaos of his desk, Dr. Larry Fleinhardt smiled at his friend. "I'm just finishing up here, Charles. I'm looking over a manuscript I've submitted to _Annals of Physics_ on my predictions of quantum corrections that I observed from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory. I've received the reviewers' comments and I have to say, they are quite critical about my findings."

Charlie made his way over to the desk and looked over his colleague's shoulder.

"Hmmm… Looks like they're questioning the validity of the co-ordinates you're using for the LIGO." Charlie skimmed through the manuscript, briefly looking it over until something caught his eye. "Wait a minute; they're criticizing the_ equations_ that support your work about gravitational waves? These people are idiots. There's nothing wrong with the math. I looked it over myself, multiple times. They completely support the rationale behind what you proposed. I… I can't believe they want you to re-evaluate them." Charlie's disbelief was quite apparent, as he continued to sputter about the reviewers' audacity.

"Now, Charles, they aren't criticizing it exactly. It's obvious from their comments that they just don't understand it. The reviewers are anonymous but nonetheless, I can say without hesitation, that they cannot possibly know math the way you know math. I simply have to address their concerns with the proofs you provided me earlier in the year. Not to worry."

"Good, good. You do that. You show them." He ran a hand through his hair while he shook his head. "Anyway, we should get going if we want to make it on time. We can pick up Amita on the way. I think she said that she was working with Dr. Kepler today."

"Oh, I saw Amita earlier. She said that she can't make it. She mumbled something about fluid dynamics and wet papers. She seemed quite distracted." Larry rearranged the documents he was working on and stacked them on the tallest pile of papers, being careful not to knock them over.

They made their way out of his office and the physics building towards Larry's car. As they approached the Model A Ford, Charlie asked, "Wet papers?"

"Yes, I believe the place she's staying at had a slight flooding issue." The two men got into the car and Larry started the motor, placing a loving hand on the dashboard and giving it a soft pat as the engine roared to life.

"How does one have a _slight_ flooding issue, Larry?"

"Well, I don't think that there was too much damage. She lost some documents she was working on for her thesis. I'm sure it's saved on her computer, though. I advised her to invest in waterproof storage containers. She did not seem too pleased by my suggestion."

Charlie grinned. Of course Amita wouldn't be too pleased… Larry's was the kind of advice given a little too late. Charlie made a mental note to ask her if she'd lost anything related to her work as his thesis student and if so, to see if he could find a copy of it in his own files.

"So, you seem rather excited to see this Emily again, Charles. Is she another Susan Berry from your past?" Larry chanced a glance at his friend as he maneuvered the vehicle in traffic.

"No, nothing like that. We worked together on a project a number of years ago. We got along really well and have kept in touch ever since. Whenever she's in town or I'm in her neck of the woods, we try to get together for at least lunch or something. She hardly ever comes to California, though. The last time I saw her was at that conference in Savannah last year."

"So, she's from Georgia, then. Lovely state, Georgia."

"Yeah, she works for the CDC over there, and is an adjunct professor at UGA."

"The CDC?"

"Yeah, she's an epidemiologist. Her specialty is the dispersion and spread of air borne pathogens."

"Air borne pathogens… now I have to wonder what kind of project would bring together a professor of applied mathematics and an epidemiologist."

Treading on thin ground, Charlie answered evasively, "You'd be surprised".

Larry, noting the vague answer, took the hint and let the matter drop. "You're sure she won't mind me coming to lunch with you two?"

Charlie laughed. "No. She's wanted to meet you for ages. I've told her all about you."

"All good things I hope."

"Of course. Although, there might have been an anecdote or two about your long history of absentmindedness."

"Long history… Come now, Charles, that's an exaggeration if I've ever heard one."

"The first time I met you, you gave me a tour of the campus. You showed me where the library was three times and would have showed it to me again, if I hadn't pointed it out. We walked around in circles for an hour." Charlie laughed at the memory.

"Yes, well, it's always good to know where the tomes of academia are, Charles." Larry hummed to himself as he spotted the restaurant where they were to meet Charlie's friend. He carefully pulled over and parked the car, making sure to leave plenty of space on either side to minimize the chance of another car dinging his precious vehicle.

Charlie glanced at his watch, noting that they were five minutes late. Hurrying his steps, with Larry following behind at a more sedate pace, he entered the bistro and searched the crowd. His eyes stopped on the familiar brown hair of a woman sitting at one of the booths in the far corner, head bowed over a book, and her right hand busily taking notes on a pad of paper.

Smiling widely, Charlie made his way over to her. When he neared, he placed his hand on her shoulder causing the young woman to start slightly and look up at him. Her surprised expression gave way to pure pleasure and a radiant smile blossomed on her face as she gasped, "Charlie!" and jumped up to give him an enthusiastic hug in greeting.

Burying his head in her hair, he returned the hug with a tight squeeze of his own. "It's good to see you, Emily! Sorry we kept you waiting."

Holding on for a moment longer than was necessary, Emily stepped back and said, "It's good to see you, too. Don't worry about it. I know you well enough to know that 12:30 doesn't necessarily mean 12:30. How someone so enamored with numbers can't seem to keep time very well is beyond me." She grinned impishly at him and then noticed the man standing directly behind him.

Leaning to the side, she addressed him easily. "You must be Larry Fleinhardt. Charlie's told me so much about you. It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" Reaching out her hand, she playfully bumped Charlie aside to get to Larry. "You must share stories with me about when you two first met. He's told me stories but they somehow always put him in a flattering light. Something tells me you can put a whole different spin on them."

Larry took in the cheerful young woman and marveled a bit at the energy that seemed to be reverberating off of her. Shaking his head, he took her hand and said, "It would be my pleasure. I've been told he's been telling tales about me, too, and it seems only fair to return the favor".

Keeping Larry's hand in hers, she lead him to the table and offered him a seat before taking the one that she had just vacated. She removed her papers from the tabletop and handed each man a menu.

"I haven't ordered anything yet. I wanted to wait and see if y'all wanted to split an appetizer or something."

"First off, did you just say _y'all_ and secondly, Larry has this thing about eating only white food."

Eyebrows raised, Emily asked curiously, "White food"?

"I'm testing a theory about super-symmetry," he said.

"Ah, examining the nature of collectivity and complex multi-dimensions in space? Well, that's one way to look at it, I suppose. You don't mind if we have something more colorful, do you?"

"No, no, by all means. I've heard good things about the three-cheese spinach dip."

"Well, I do like cheese. What do you think, Charlie?"

"Sounds good to me."

The trio contemplated the menu and gave their order to the waitress when she came to their table.

As they waited for their meals, they exchanged pleasantries and Larry had them laughing hysterically with stories about a young Charlie. By the time their food came, the three were talking like old friends.

"You know, by the time I met Charlie he was about 22 or 23. I think he was done his second doctorate by then. Anyway, he was so sure of everything… very focused. I remember being a little in awe of him. I mean, we were the only people under the age of forty at the site and he just fit right in. I sort of lurked in the background for the first month or so."

"First month?", Larry asked curiously.

Startled that Larry had no knowledge about the circumstances surrounding how the two met, Emily tried to recover quickly. "Yes, um, that first month. But, anyway, after I got over being intimidated by him and everything else, I found out that he was actually much more timid than I was. Except about math… nothing about math scared him."

Trying to get Larry's mind off Emily's slip-up, Charlie remarked, "Did you just imply that YOU are timid? I'm sorry, nothing could be further from the truth."

Rolling her eyes, she responded, "Well, I'm not shy at all anymore. But it took me a long time to feel confident enough to share my ideas and even longer to be comfortable in my own skin. I remember you told me some stories about bullies from your high school, but I have to tell you, it's nothing compared to what a group of spiteful and malicious teenage girls can do to a person's self-confidence and perception of self-worth, especially if they're much younger and have no one to defend them. Those girls took mean to a whole new level."

Larry nodded sagely. "Sticks and stones can break one's bones but words can shatter a soul. You turned out remarkable well in spite of all that, though."

Emily laughed, "Well, that depends on who you ask"!

Larry took a quick look at his watch and made a small noise of surprise. "Charles, it's almost 3. We've been here for over two hours! I have to be on campus in fifteen minutes and don't you have a class at 3:30?"

"Are you kidding me? I can't believe it. Time just flew by… and no wise cracks about mathematicians not being able to keep time." Emily tried to suppress the smirk on her face. "Listen, Em, you have to come by the house before you leave. We'll have a barbecue or something. I'm not a great cook, but I'm pretty good at making burgers. I've calculated the most optimal placement of the burgers on the grill to have them all cook evenly, dependent on the temperature of the grill and any hot spots in the fire itself."

"Only you would construct an equation to cook hamburgers. I'd love to, and maybe I could meet your dad and older brother that you keep talking about… the big, bad FBI agent. I still can't believe you and he work together sometimes. That has got to be one of the oddest crime-fighting duos: Law-Man meets Math-Geek. Do you guys have matching capes or what?"

"Ha, ha. Don't let Don hear you say that. And I prefer "The Incredible Math-Hulk", thank you very much."

Grinning she made shooing motions with her hands. "You guys better head out now or you'll both be late. It was great meeting you Larry. I hope to see you at Charlie's barbecue later this week. I'll take care of the bill and you'll just owe me for next time, okay Charlie?"

Charlie gave her a one-armed hug as he got his bag out from under the table. "Thanks. Sorry to rush out. Come by on Saturday afternoon. I'll e-mail you the details later or maybe give you a call at your hotel. Will you need a ride to get to my place?"

"Probably, although I'm not sure I trust you behind the wheel. I still haven't forgotten what happened the last time."

"I got distracted. It's not my fault."

Emily's face clearly said that she didn't buy his excuse for a second. She shook Larry's hand and bid them both farewell. She watched them leave the restaurant and asked their waitress for their bill. As she waited, she drew out the book from her bag, and resumed her earlier task of reading and taking notes. She did not notice the two men wearing dark suits sitting two rows over, who had been sitting there during the entire duration of her lunch with the two professors.

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_A/N: I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. I'm trying to establish the Emily character a little bit, so this first chapter is mostly the introduction of her character with some interaction between Charlie and Larry (they have such a quirky relationship sometimes). I hope you enjoyed it! Comments, suggestions and reviews are always welcome. Thanks!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late. _

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds. _

-----

Charlie headed to his office to pick up the notes for his afternoon lecture. He couldn't believe that they had spent over two hours eating and chatting with Emily. It had been so good to see her. He smiled as he recalled the brief conversation he had had with Larry in the car on the way back to CalSci.

_-flashback-_

"Emily's a delight, Charles. I can see now why you were so excited to see her."

"Yeah, she's great. Every time I see her, I always leave feeling happy. She has that personality, I guess."

"So, you're going to have a barbecue at your place this Saturday. That's a nice and rather unexpected surprise."

Laughing he said, "I better tell my dad right away, in case he makes plans to go out or something. I should call Don, too, although I don't know if he'll be able to make it. I actually haven't seen him in a couple of weeks. He's been working on the same case for the last little while. I offered to help, but he said that this one required good old fashion detective work".

"Yes, Megan mentioned that their team was working on some gang-related violence."

Smirking a little, Charlie turned awkwardly in the car to see his friend's expression. "Megan mentioned, did she? Was this over lunch or perhaps another dinner?"

A slight blush began to creep into Larry's cheeks as he retorted, "Charles, do not make me repeat my gamma ray burst analogy again".

Grinning even more broadly now, he asked, "So how is that going, by the way"?

"We are enjoying each other's company. That's all you need to know."

Turning to face forward again, he commented, "Well, I'm glad. You guys are good together. You seem happy, if not a bit bumbling around her."

A short, barking laugh came from Larry. "Did you say bumbling? If you want to see bumbling, Charles, all you have to do is look in the mirror. You and Amita…"

Charlie interrupted him. "There is no Amita and I. We've hit an impasse of sorts. She was offered that position at Harvard and it's a great opportunity for her. And you know, something my dad said to me when I told him about her possibly moving, got me thinking. He said that 'starting to happen is not really worth fighting for' and he's right. I don't really know what my feelings are for her. I mean, in the years that I was her supervisor, I had this vision of what it would be like if we _could_ date and when that scenario became a viable option, it fizzled even before it got started. That's not to say it's a statistical impossibility, but at the moment, it's not highly probable."

"Two minds such as yours and Amita… it seems a shame. But, you know, there does seem to be a nice chemistry between you and Emily." Larry made the last comment as CalSci came into view.

Charlie remained silent a moment as Larry parallel parked, not wanting to disturb his friend's concentration. Parallel parking and Charlie were not friends; he much preferred pull throughs or parking on an empty street.

As they got out of the car, Charlie said, "I've already told you, Larry. It's not like that with her and me."

Larry sighed. "You know, Charles, you're never going to give your father those much desired grand-wormholes if you keep this attitude."

"Grand-wormholes? Don't you get started, too, Larry. I'll see you later. I'll let you know about the barbecue after I talk to my dad."

"Just think about it, Charles. Good day."

_-end flashback –_

Shaking his head at that last thought, Charlie gathered his notes and headed to his classroom, prepared to give a lecture on dealing with binary data using logistic regression.

-----

"Dad? Are you in here, somewhere?" Charlie called out as he entered the house. He dropped his bag, and put his keys on the tray by the door.

"Charlie? Is that you? How was your day? How did lunch go with that friend of yours, from Texas was it?" Alan Eppes stepped out of the kitchen, dish towel in hand.

"Georgia, actually. It was good. Larry came and we had fun; we actually lost track of the time and were almost late getting back to school. I'm glad that you brought up meeting Emily today. I invited her over for a barbecue this Saturday. I hope that's alright. She said that she wants to meet you. I'm going to ask Don if he can come, too. He hasn't been by for a while. It would be good to see him."

"A barbecue? Sure, that would be great. I'll pick up some burgers and a few rib-eyes. So, Emily wants to meet me, huh? What exactly are her intentions with my son?" His interest peaked, Alan eyed his youngest boy.

Rubbing his face a bit, and squeezing his eyes shut in exasperation, Charlie replied, "Don't start, Dad. We're just friends. I've known her for a long time and she's just never met you or Don. She's only in town for a few more days. She's doing a series of guest lectures at CalSci. I think her last day in California is Tuesday. There's a faculty dinner on Monday for her and the other guest lecturers but I thought it would be nice to have a less formal one at the house. I'll invite Amita, too. Maybe Larry will bring Megan. If Don's finished the case, maybe Colby and David would want to come, too."

"Hey, we can have a full house and I'll have both my boys home. Sounds like an excellent Saturday to me."

"Great. I'll call Don to see if he and his team are available."

"You do that. And make sure he knows that his father would like to see him every once in a while. Or at least hear from him. How hard is it to pick up a phone?" Alan shook his head as he went back into the kitchen to stir his pot of chili.

Charlie grimaced a bit at Alan's retreating back. Hopefully Don would be able to come by and Alan wouldn't lecture him on the modern convenience of a telephone.

-----

Don stretched his arms above his head, trying to work out the kink in his back. He had been at his desk all morning, trying to finish the report from their last case. They had finally caught a break earlier in the week from an informant in the East LA Street gang, giving them the date and location for a shipment of automatic assault weapons.

Normally, this type of case would have fallen under the jurisdiction of the ATF, but a federal officer, working undercover, had been murdered, along with his family, after the gang had found out about his identity. After his team took on the investigation, they began to unravel a web of lies that resulted in the arrest of numerous gang members, as well as two LAPD officers. More arrests were pending and IAB had been called in to investigate several officers in the 49th Precinct.

Setting aside the last of the files, Don got up and made his way over to his team. "You guys did a good job. I know it's been a rough couple of weeks. Let's call it an early day; I can't recall the last time I was inside of my apartment during daylight hours."

"Man, I can't believe the stuff that we pulled out of that place. The sheer volume of weaponry; enough to start a mini-war on the streets of LA."

"That was probably the point, Colby," David said wryly, as he sat at his desk, nursing his fourth cup of coffee in the last hour.

"I'm going home to enjoy my first eight hours of uninterrupted sleep in a month," Megan Reeves practically purred as she put away the last of her paperwork. "What about you guys?"

"I haven't seen Linda and the kids for so long. I might go over there, see if I can't get a decent meal, too. There's only so much boiled pasta I can eat."

"I think I'm going to call up Melissa from accounting, maybe see a movie or something. Hopefully I don't fall asleep during it."

"Melissa from accounting, Granger? When did that happen?" Megan asked.

"Saw her on the elevator a while ago. Got her number. She probably won't want to go… she gave it to me over three weeks ago and I've never called her."

"I'm sure if you explained the situation she'll be duly impressed and say yes right away." David joked lightly.

"I think I'll call Charlie. Go over to the house. Grab a beer and watch the game. Listen to a lecture from my dad about not calling."

The agents laughed, knowing that that was exactly what Mr. Eppes would do. His desire to have constant and consistent contact with his sons was common knowledge and a source of amusement, and envy, for some.

As the group dispersed to collect their gear and leave the FBI office for the day, Don's cell phone rang. Picking it up, he automatically answered "Eppes".

"Oh, um, hey, Don. It's Charlie. I, uh, wasn't expecting to actually get a real person."

Don smiled as he grabbed his suit jacket and shrugged into it, holding the phone to his ear with his shoulder. "Yeah, I've been letting it go to voicemail while we were staking-out the location. What's up, Charlie?"

"Oh, I was just wondering how the case was going, and to invite you to the house for a barbecue on Saturday."

"A barbecue, huh? That sounds just up my alley right about now. We solved our case, finally. I am definitely in the mood for dad's rib-eye. What are you guys having tonight? I was thinking of coming by. I'll pick up a six pack on my way over."

"Oh, great. That's great. I think dad made chili. You know, you should invite the rest of your team to come over, too. It will be good for them after such a hard case. Nice and relaxing. It'll be at 4 o'clock. Larry will be at the barbecue, and probably Amita, too. My friend Emily from Georgia is visiting and she's coming also. She said that she wants to meet you and dad."

Don waved over to his fellow agents, asking them to hold on a moment. "Emily, huh? I'm going to need more information on her, but I'll get it when I come over. I'm going to ask everybody before they leave. I'll see you in a little while."

"There's nothing to tell, Don. But, yeah, I'll see you at home. I'll let Dad know you're coming by."

Forgetting to say good-bye, Don hung up the phone and headed over to the group of people waiting by the elevators.

"That was Charlie. He's inviting everyone over for a barbecue at the house on Saturday at 4:00." The elevator arrived and they all got in.

"A barbecue at the Eppes'? Wouldn't miss it." Megan readily accepted the invitation.

"Do you think your Dad will make his brisket?" David asked.

"Sounds like fun. Count me in," was the reply from Colby.

"Good, good. I'll see you guys tomorrow," Don said as they got off on the main floor. As they made to go their separate ways to their respective vehicles, Don called over his shoulder to Megan. "Oh, Charlie told me to specifically mention that Larry will be there, too. Just in case you were wondering." He turned towards his car, missing the funny face Megan pulled. Colby and David did not, however, and howled with laughter.

-----

_A/N: Hope you enjoyed the second chapter. The action will start in a few more chapters, so please bear with me. I have a fairly good outline of how I want this story to go, but I am always open to feedback. As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are always welcome. Thanks!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late. _

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds. _

-----

Six-pack in hand, Don made his way up the front porch steps and walked through the door of his childhood home. The delicious scent of his dad's home made chili wafted out from the dining room, and he followed his nose to find his brother at the table, setting the dishes.

"Hey, Buddy. How's it going?"

Looking up, Charlie saw his older brother and smiled warmly. He took note of his brother's haggard appearance but also the satisfied gleam in his eyes. Whatever Don had been working on over the last few weeks had taken its toll, but his team had obviously solved the case and caught the bad guys. Score one for Law-Man and his crime fighting team. Charlie laughed softly to himself as he placed the cutlery down on the table.

Don heard Charlie's laughter and looked at him questioningly. His brother seemed to be in a pretty good mood and he wondered if it had anything to do with that girl that he had mentioned on the phone. He was about to ask when Alan Eppes came out of the kitchen carrying bowls of bread and salad.

"Donnie! It's good to see you! I'm glad to see you're all in one piece. Would it kill you to pick up the phone to say hello to your old dad?"

"Hey, pops. Yeah, sorry about that. You know, the case was pretty time consuming. But it's all cleared now. Charlie mentioned something about a barbecue this weekend at the house… and a girlfriend."

Charlie's head went up in a flash, giving his brother a scowl. Don just opened a beer and covered his smile with the can as he took a sip. Mentioning his little brother's prospects of having a girlfriend was a simple and effective diversionary tactic to avoid a lecture about him being incommunicado for the last while. From the look on Charlie's face, Don knew that he had figured it out.

"I thought you said that she wasn't your girlfriend," Alan said accusingly to his youngest son.

"She's not, Dad! I just mentioned that she was coming to the barbecue. That's it. Anyway, you should ask Don if he's going to bring anybody."

Sputtering, Don managed not to spit out the beer he had just put in his mouth. Alan swung around and detected the tell-tale redness creeping up the neck of his eldest son.

"Well, well, well… is there someone you want to have over the house, too? Maybe I should ask Donna to come so that all the Eppes' men have dates."

"I have no idea what he's talking about. _Charlie_." There was a warning tone in Don's voice that was unmistakable.

Charlie wagged his eyebrows up and down suggestively but remained silent. Alan looked back and forth from his two sons and, when no further information was forth-coming, gave a deep sigh.

"Where I went wrong with you two, I will never know. Now, let's eat and we can discuss your love-lives on a full stomach."

The three men sat down and enjoyed the tasty meal that Alan had prepared. A familiar and light-hearted camaraderie surrounded the table as the family had their first family dinner together in a long while. Over steaming bowls of chili and fresh bread, they chatted together, caught up on the latest news in each other's lives and shared a few laughs. As Alan got up to get himself another drink, he looked at his two boys bantering back and forth, and a warm feeling of contentment filled him. Smiling to himself, he went into the kitchen and thought longingly of his wife Margaret, and how happy she would have been to see their sons right now.

-----

After dinner, Don and Alan watched the baseball game while Charlie sat at the table grading some assignments. After the broadcast, Don went over to see what he was up to. Taking a seat, he nursed his second beer of the night, and nudged Charlie's elbow to get his attention. His younger brother made a soft grunting noise, which caused Don to smile and nudge the elbow again, a little harder this time. Charlie's only reaction was to move his arm out of the way and to shift his chair a little away from his brother.

Memories of their youth came back to Don in a flash and he remembered many a night when Charlie was so absorbed in his papers that he wouldn't notice that Don would poke him or draw funny faces and shapes on his arm. Don thought about grabbing a pen and seeing if he could do it but thought better of it… he couldn't imagine what Charlie's students would think when their professor wrote on the board at the front of the class, with a hand decorated with scary faces and stick figures.

"So, Charlie, I understand all of the evasive tactics with Dad, but what gives? Who is this Emily person? I've never heard of her."

"Hmmm?" was the only response he got as Charlie continued to look through lines and lines of equations on the sheet of paper in front of him.

Shaking his head, Don grabbed the pen out of Charlie's hand and said, "Earth to Charlie. Emily. Who is she and why haven't I heard of her before?"

Don watched Charlie as he slowly focused on what he was saying. It was always interesting to see the transformation on Charlie's face when he stopped concentrating on the numbers in his head and came back to the real world.

"Oh, um, she's a friend. I've known her for almost 8 years. We met at a workshop in New York. And hey, don't put ideas in dad's head. He's finally leaving me alone about Amita. I don't need him to get any hair-brained schemes about match-making."

"Let me tell you, he's already got ideas. Mark my words." After a moment's pause, he said, "Wait a minute, 8 years ago? I didn't know you were in New York. I thought you were at Oxford as a visiting lecturer for a few months".

"Oh, right. Yeah, um, we met before that at the workshop and then found out we were both going to the UK. It was quite a coincidence." Even as the words came out of his mouth, Charlie knew how flimsy the story sounded.

Ever skeptical, Don shot Charlie a knowing look. "A coincidence? Really? Now that's interesting. So, what were you really doing?"

Recalling their conversation over a year ago when Don had asked him about his work for the NSA, Charlie tried to look mysterious and replied, "Wouldn't you like to know"?

"Seriously? That's all you've got for me?" Charlie grinned and nodded. Don wanted to prod him further but figured that maybe there were some things he really shouldn't know.

He shook his head and said, "I'll just have to ask Emily when I meet her. I'm sure she's got stories to tell."

Grinning even more widely, Charlie said, "Ask her about Law-Man and the Incredible Math Hulk".

Turning, Don gave his brother a confused look but Charlie's attention was already drawn to the papers in front of him, and he was again lost in his math world. Don made his way back to the recliner in the family room to check out the post-game highlights. Taking a seat, he leaned back and had to wonder what exactly his brother was doing eight years ago, and if he had lied to his parents about that, what other things he had been hiding. He had to give his brother credit; for someone who had been terrible at keeping secrets as a kid, he was sure keeping his hand close to his chest, now.

-----

The day of the barbecue brought with it a brightly shining sun and a soft, cool breeze. Don came over early to help set up the grill with his dad. Charlie got the house ready, making sure to have plenty of ice and drinks in the fridge for the guests. After ensuring that everything looked alright, he told his brother and father that he would be back in twenty minutes to go pick up Emily at her hotel. The two men waved him off as they stood in front of the barbecue, fiddling with the propane tank and getting ready to light it.

On Charlie's way out, he bumped into David and Colby who had arrived together, bringing with them some beer and chips and pointed them in the direction of the backyard, telling them to go on in and make themselves at home. Familiar with the layout of the Eppes' residence, the two men went in and headed straight for the kitchen to put their offerings in the fridge.

As Charlie got in his car, he felt a brief fluttering in his stomach and wondered why he was a bit nervous. Deciding that it was best not to dwell on it, he put the car in gear and headed over to Emily's hotel.

Arriving only a few minutes late, he saw Emily standing in front of the building, chatting with the doorman. Charlie got out of the car and waved to try and get her attention. He thought about finding a parking spot and walking over to her, but she must have noticed his gesturing because she looked up with a smile and put up her hand in greeting. He watched as she turned and said a few words to the man. Giving the doorman a small wave, she walked quickly over to Charlie and gave him a quick hug.

"I'm impressed. You're almost on-time."

Charlie rolled his eyes as he held the passenger door open for her. Making sure she got in alright, he closed the door and headed over to the driver's side. "A couple of guys from Don's FBI team arrived as I was leaving. We will have a pretty full house today."

"It should be fun. It'll be nice to see Larry again, and to meet your brother and dad. Oh, I didn't know what to bring for the barbecue, so I hope you like red wine."

"You shouldn't have brought anything, but that was very thoughtful of you. Thanks. About meeting everybody, be on your guard around my dad. There is a distinct possibility that he will give you the third degree."

Laughing, Emily replied, "I'll be sure to keep my answers light and vague. So does anybody at the party know we met working on a project for the NSA?"

"No. Actually, my brother didn't even know that I had top security clearance until last year."

"You're kidding? I'm surprised; I thought you told him everything."

Smiling, Charlie shook his head. "No, not about that stuff. Don only has a vague idea of the other types of consulting work I do. I think it's better that way. He and dad worry enough about me already without knowing about the particulars of some of the projects I work on."

"You make yourself sound like James Bond or some secret agent."

"No, I'm definitely not James Bond material. But, they really don't know about the types of places that I've been or any of the highly classified work I've done. I think my dad likes the idea of me in an ivory tower."

Nodding in understanding, Emily commented, "My parents are the same way. It's easier to let them believe that all I do is work with numbers and crunch data. I remember when I went to Toronto to help with the quarantining of potential SARS victims, my dad was terrified. I kept having to reassure him that we were taking extreme measurements to avoid infection. I can't imagine what he would do if he found out that I work with biological agents on a regular basis."

"So, as I said, be on your guard. And not just about how we met. My dad's designated himself as Mr. Match-Maker for the day. You might want to watch out for his well-meaning, but pointed remarks about you and me."

"Really? Where did he get the idea of us as potentials for a love connection?"

"Love connection?"

"I got really bored yesterday and tuned into the Game Show Network. Sue me."

"I don't know. I guess because I mentioned that you wanted to meet them. Gave him some wild notions of you as a prospective daughter-in-law."

"What happened to Amita? I thought you guys were going to give it a try once she wasn't your thesis student anymore."

Charlie turned onto the street where the house was. Cars filled the driveway and a few others were parked alongside the curb. Charlie parked behind Don's SUV and let the motor idle for a moment. "Things with her didn't work out very well. We went on this one date and it was abysmal. Before the date, we promised each other that we wouldn't talk about work or math the whole night. It turns out that we don't have that much in common once you take math out of the equation."

Giving her long-time friend an incredulous look, she said, "You mean to tell me that two highly intelligent people whose main focus for the last ten years or so of their lives was numbers, and in your case, your whole life, decided to not let any math-talk enter into your conversation for the whole evening? Did you want it to fail even before it began?"

"What are you talking about? Of course not."

"Then why take math off of the table? It's what you do, Charlie. You live and breathe numbers. To go out on a date with another mathematician and expect to be able to talk about other things except math is just ludicrous. It's like expecting to be able to go swimming in the deep end of a pool and not ever come up for air. You can do it for a little while, but eventually you just have to surface. It's your life's passion, for crying out loud. It's no wonder things didn't work out. You hardly gave it a chance."

Opening his car door he told her firmly, "We did and it was just awkward. Even now, months later, we're still not the same as we used to be. I miss how we were. I'd rather try and go back to how things were then go forward on something that felt weird. Anyway, she was offered a job at Harvard and I think that she'll take it. It's the right decision for her."

Emily got out and went over to Charlie. Taking his hand, she gave it a squeeze. "I didn't mean to give you a hard time. I just remember how happy you were when I saw you last year in Savannah and you talked about her. I'm just disappointed for you that it didn't work out."

"Don't be. I'm actually alright with the fact that it didn't."

They walked around the house, following the soft humming sounds of conversation as they neared the backyard. Neither noticed that they were still holding hands, but as they turned the corner, conversation stopped and all eyes were on them.

Alan immediately noticed the clasped hands and tried to suppress the exuberant smile that wanted to burst onto his face. Instead, he smiled warmly and walked towards the couple.

"You must be Emily Winters. I'm Alan Eppes, Charlie and Don's father. It's good to meet you. Oh, you've brought wine. How lovely. Let me take that from you. Come on up, join the group." Taking the bottle from her hand, he gently ushered the two towards the patio.

Charlie cleared his throat and made the introductions. Emily greeted everybody with her usual enthusiasm, but stayed glued to his side. He finally noticed that they were still holding hands by the almost vise-like grip that she had on his hand. He wondered if he should try to extricate himself, but thought that it might be too awkward. He cast a sideways glance at her. He noticed that although she was smiling at everyone, she seemed a little tense and he wondered if she wasn't a little nervous to meet all of these people. He marveled at her shyness and remembered their lunch conversation with Larry earlier in the week. Perhaps a little bit of that shy teenager still lurked inside of her.

-----

Emily finally started to relax as she talked to Megan and Larry. She noticed the death-hold she had on Charlie's hand and managed to slowly unclench her fingers. Looking up, she smiled and let go of his hand, patting it softly in apology. He smiled in return and asked if she wanted something to drink. At her nod, he went off in search of something for her and she again turned back to the couple. It was then that she noticed the tall, dark-haired man that Charlie had introduced as his brother Don coming towards the trio.

"Hi, I'm Don. It's good to meet you. My brother has told me so little about you."

She couldn't stop the laugh from coming out. "Charlie warned me about you. Tough as nails, straight shooter, direct-to-the point older brother. I have also been instructed to give you as little information as possible."

Don, who had not expected her forthrightness, grinned. "Well, I hope you can keep a secret better than he can."

Immediately feeling comfortable around Don, she relaxed even further and shot back with a wicked grin, saying "Well, there are secrets and then there are _secrets_. I'm good at keeping both under wraps."

"Charlie tells me you're a professor at the University of Georgia. I don't watch a lot of college football, but those Bulldogs are the team to watch."

Nodding, she replied, "I don't go to very many games, myself. It's almost impossible to get on campus when there's a home game. Charlie told me you're more of a baseball man… the Stockton Rangers, right?"

"That's right. Good memory. Charlie never told me what you teach at UGA."

"I'm actually only an adjunct professor, in the Department of Health Administration, Biostatistics and Epidemiology. I work at the Centre for Disease Control in Atlanta full-time, mainly with air-borne pathogens."

She noticed the subtle shift in Don's stance and a glint in his eye as he digested what she had said and put two and two together. "So you met Charlie at a workshop and then off to the UK?"

"Something like that." She gave him a smile that showed that she knew that he had put the puzzle pieces together, but didn't give any other information. Accepting her silence for what it was, he relaxed his stance. The four continued to talk easily, with Charlie and Amita joining them a few moments later. He noticed Charlie's solicitous attitude toward the young woman, and the way that their bodies would accidentally brush against one another.

Soon, the others joined in the conversation, and happy chatter filled the air with the smell of charcoal-grilled meat floating around them. Charlie helped his dad man the grill, and after a while, everybody had plates in their hands heaped with food.

As the day wore on, Emily easily assimilated herself into the close knit group. Don was amazed at how well she fit in, easily conversing about the Dodger's chances of making the play-offs and switching into an in depth discussion about Charlie's Cognitive Emergence Theory and Amita's past work on combinatronics. All the while, she managed to maintain a friendly and open attitude. He was not the only one who noticed. Looking over at his dad, he saw the fond look on his face as he gazed at his youngest son and the sociable woman.

Knowing that visions of weddings and grandchildren were dancing in his head, Don caught Charlie's eye and made an imperceptible motion towards their father. Catching the hint, Charlie glanced at the man and gave him a fierce shake of his head in a silent request to leave it alone. Don chuckled to himself, knowing that Charlie was fighting a losing battle.

"These burgers are great, Charlie. I guess that equation you developed to make the perfect burger actually worked."

"You made up an equation to cook a hamburger?" Colby asked incredulously.

"Well, it's not too precise as it's dependent on a number of different variables that I can't control. But, yes, for the most part, it works."

David polished off the burger on his plate and savored the flavor. "It definitely works for me. This is just what I needed to end the work week. Thanks for inviting me over."

Alan Eppes clapped David on the shoulder. "Nonsense. It's a pleasure to have you and everybody over. If you want more food, help yourself. Save room for dessert, though. There's apple pie, ice cream, and some sweets I got at the bakery down the road."

"Mmm… apple pie. You definitely know my weakness Mr. Eppes. Charlie, I think you might have to roll me into your car by the end of the night. The food is really delicious. Who brought the samosas? They were so tasty. Just the right amount of spice."

"Thanks. My grandmother showed me how to make them." Amita responded to Emily's compliment.

"You did a great job." Emily smiled at Amita and although the young graduate student returned her smile, it seemed a little forced. She wondered if she had inadvertently done something wrong, but her thoughts were interrupted with Don's suggestion of working off some of the food by shooting some hoops.

Always up for a game, she readily agreed and the eight party-goers, minus Alan who declined to play and opted instead to watch and keep score, divided into two teams. Emily ended up on a team with Charlie, Don and Megan, while Amita, David, Colby and Larry were on the other team. They spent a fun-filled afternoon playing and joking with one another.

The weeks of stress that had occupied the FBI team's mind melted away as they taunted one another with the ball, and laughed uproariously as they deke'd out opposing players and made outrageous moves on the court in an attempt to score points. The academics of the group managed to get in a few good shots themselves, with Charlie pulling off a spectacular shot from what would have been the three-point line.

They spent over an hour playing until darkness began to descend, after which, they all grabbed some dessert and sat out in the patio, drinking their beverage of choice, and talking amongst themselves. Emily sat on the arm of Charlie's chair, leaning into him and enjoyed one of the most relaxing evenings she had had in a long time.

-----

_A/N: I hope you enjoyed this installment. I know it appears to be veering into the romance genre, but that is really not the focus of this story. In fact, when I first conceived the idea for "Beware the Air" and the character of Emily I had no intention of making her a potential love interest for Charlie. I have no idea how that happened (I suppose even fictional characters have minds of their own). The next chapter will have a bit more suspense and will hopefully jump into the mystery/crime-solving component of this story. As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are always welcome. Thanks!_


	4. Chapter 4

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Charlie stood beside Larry at the faculty dinner Monday evening, listening to the conversation around him. He watched his fellow academics milling around the room and noticed how they were all in semi-formal attire. Looking down at his own jeans and well-worn corduroy jacket, he chided himself a bit on still dressing like a student rather than one of the faculty.

Bits and pieces of conversation drifted to his ears, mainly to do with current research pursuits and grants people were writing. The sedate and dignified atmosphere was a far cry from the happy-go-lucky dinner at his place a few days ago. He chanced a look at his watch and noted that it was well passed 7, over an hour since the party had commenced. Worriedly, he searched the room again for Emily.

"You know, it's just not like her to be this late. Or to be late at all. She teases me constantly about never being on time."

"Well, you are consistently late for everything, Charles."

"That's not the point, Larry. When I dropped her off Saturday night she specifically mentioned that she would be attending tonight."

"Perhaps she called you to let you know that she wouldn't make it. You are notorious for not checking your voice mail."

Shooting his friend an exasperated looked, he replied, "I checked it when I first started wondering where she was. I'm going to try calling her at the hotel again. I'm telling you, it's just not like her."

Charlie maneuvered his way around the mass of bodies to the front door. Stepping out, he opened his cell phone and hit redial. When the receptionist picked up, he asked for her room, and waited impatiently while the telephone started to ring. After six rings, the receptionist came back on again and asked if he would like to leave a message at the front desk for her. Declining, Charlie bid her a good night and hung up.

He was just about to go back in when he was way laid by a fellow professor in the math department who wanted to ask him questions about a paper they were collaborating on. He spoke with him for a few minutes, but the other man, noticing his distraction, asked to set up a time to meet next week. Hastily agreeing, he retreated back into the house to find Larry.

"Larry, you know, I really am concerned. Do you think we can duck out for a bit and go by her hotel?"

"Sure, Charles. I'm finding some of the company rather mundane. No one wants to talk to me about my string theory debate."

Making their way back outside, Charlie had to smile. "It might have something to do with the lack of physicists here, tonight. I'm not sure Dr. Flannigan asked all of the departments to attend. You only knew about it because I was going."

"Yes, Russell is not known for his diplomacy, I have to agree. He likes to keep his little corner of the academic world all to himself. I'm surprised that the math department was invited at all."

"He invited a number of well-known biostatisticians who are acquainted with people from our department. Russell may be a bit elitist, but he knows whose toes not to tread on."

They drove over to the hotel, Charlie trying to keep his anxiety in check. He figured he was probably over-reacting, but he had a bad feeling about Emily's absence. He knew he had a reputation for being stuck in his head a lot of the time and had trouble picking up on certain social cues, but something about the situation shot up warning signals inside of him.

Aside from the fact that it was completely out of character for her, he had begun to have this sneaking suspicion of late that he was being watched. The feeling had begun the day after his lunch with Larry and Emily. He had never actually seen anyone in particular, but he couldn't seem to completely ignore the prickling feeling at the back of his neck at odd times during the day. He wanted to ask Larry if he had been having the same feeling, but felt that perhaps he was being a tad paranoid and was also not in the mood to listen to Larry's '1984' speech, again.

Arriving at the hotel, Larry found a parking spot and followed Charlie in. The young professor had found out the room number when he had called earlier looking for her. As they approached her room, he noticed that the door was slightly ajar.

His steps faltered as he neared and he looked hesitantly back at his friend who shrugged his shoulders in confusion. Reaching up, Charlie knocked on the door and called Emily's name. When silence greeted them, he cautiously pushed open the door and peered inside. Chaos met his eyes as he took in the overturned chair, the half-packed suitcase on the bed, and strewn papers everywhere.

Larry looked over his shoulder and gave a cry of surprised. Charlie began to step into the room, only to have his arm grabbed by Larry. Turning to his friend, he saw the look of dawning horror clearly on his face.

"What's wrong, Larry?"

"Charles, look over there." Pointing a finger, he directed Charlie to look at the wall on the left and that's when he noticed the dark stain that dripped down onto the floor, and the handprint smudges along the baseboard. Charlie stood frozen as he realized that he was most likely looking at Emily's blood.

Gasping, he finally broke free from his frozen position and, yelling Emily's name loudly, rushed inside. Larry made a futile attempt to grab him to prevent him from barging into the room. "Charles, you can't go in there. You have to call the police. You'll contaminate the scene!"

"She might be in here and can't answer us. I have to see." Dreading the possibility of what he might find, he searched the room, being careful not to disturb anything. Shoulders slumping in relief when he didn't find her body lying unconscious or worse, Larry's last words finally penetrated his brain.

The words _police_ and _scene_ echoing in his head had him slapping his hands against his coat, looking for his cell phone. Clumsily ripping it out of his pocket, he went to stand outside of the door and immediately called 911. When he hung up, he rubbed his hands on his face, trying to calm his nerves. Making a decision, he hit speed dial 2 on his phone and listened as it rang.

-----

David, Colby and Don were sitting around a small table splitting a tray of nachos at a sports pub two blocks from FBI headquarters when the phone on the table began to vibrate. Don, recognizing Charlie's number grinned and picked it up, his mind still on the game playing on the big screen.

"Eppes."

Static filled his ear and then the stilted voice of his brother could be heard over the airwaves. "Don… Don, it's Charlie. Something's happened, I don't know what. I… Can you come?"

Don, recognizing the panic dripping from his brother's voice quickly got up. "Is it Dad, Charlie? What's going on? Are you alright?" The other two men heard the urgency in their boss's voice and signaled the waitress to come over with their bill.

"No, no, it's not Dad. I'm at Emily's hotel. She didn't come to the faculty dinner and Larry and I went to see what was keeping her. She's never late. She wasn't picking up her phone so I got worried."

His brother was rambling. Charlie never rambled unless he was talking math. Don grabbed his jacket and started to walk towards the front door, David and Colby following behind, exchanging worried glances.

"When we got here, her door was opened. There's stuff everywhere, and, Don… I think there's blood. It's on the wall and the floor. I called the police and they're on their way. But, I would feel better if you could come here, too. I mean, it might not be a big deal, but I kinda think it is."

"I'll be there soon. What hotel is it?" After getting the details from his brother, Don hung up the phone and turned to his co-workers. "It's Charlie's friend, Emily. He thinks someone broke into her room and there's evidence of a struggle."

"Evidence…?"

"Charlie says there's blood. He's already called the police but I'm going to go check it out. Make sure he's alright. And I'll have a better chance of finding out anything from the officers on the scene then he will."

"Do you want us to come with you?"

Smiling slightly at the offer, he thanked them. "No, it's okay. It might not be anything. I'll see you guys at the office tomorrow." Don got into his car and followed the directions Charlie gave him with the phrase, "_I kinda think it is_" ringing in his head.

-----

_A/N: Finally, some drama. Sorry that the chapter is a big shorter than the others and to leave it on semi-cliff hanger, but I will hopefully have another chapter to post by the end of the day. As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are always welcome. Thanks!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

As Don approached the hotel, he could see the flashing lights of the police cruiser blocking the main entranceway. Finding a parking spot, Don got out of the vehicle and walked towards the officer standing guard.

"I'm sorry, sir, you can't go in there. All guests and visitors are requested to go next door, where an officer will ask you questions and make arrangements for you to get back to your room."

Don took out his FBI badge from his suit pocket and showed it to the officer, telling him that he had been called in. The officer stood a little straighter and looked at the identification and waved him in. He was a little surprised that he was able to get in so easily, or that the officer hadn't radio'd someone to verify his claim. Chancing a last glance at him, he noticed the nervousness of the young man and pegged him as a new recruit, fresh out of the academy.

Deciding that he shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, Don took the stairs and went up to the floor Charlie had told him that Emily was staying on. Once he reached the landing, he went through the doors to see numerous officers working the scene, some talking to guests staying in rooms close to Emily's, and others collecting evidence. Don saw Charlie and Larry at the end of the corridor and started to walk towards them. He passed Emily's room and looked in, seeing the mess that Charlie had described, as well as what was unmistakably blood on one of the walls. This did not look good.

As Don got closer to Charlie he caught the tail end of his explanation of why he had gone into the room and what he had seen. When he finished his sentence he turned his attention away from the interviewer to look back at Emily's door, when he saw his brother a few feet away. Charlie acknowledged his presence with a nod and the movement was caught by the interviewer. Turning around, he saw Don and motioned for him to come over.

"My name is Detective Wilson. Who are you and how did you get onto this floor?"

"Special Agent Don Eppes." He reached out to shake the detective's hand.

"Are you related to Dr. Eppes?" He motioned towards Charlie.

"Yes, he's my brother. He called me after he phoned 911. He was scared and wanted me to come get him." Don said this as casually as possible, in an attempt not to insult the detective or make him think he was questioning his investigation.

"Your brother is not a suspect at this time. We are merely getting his statement about the details of how he got here and discovered what he did."

"You're just following protocol, I understand. I am not trying to interfere in anyway. I just came by to make sure my brother was alright. He's not used to seeing things like this. He's a mathematician. I also knew Emily. I wanted to find out what happened myself."

Nodding, the detective accepted his answer. "We're almost done here, Dr. Eppes, Dr. Fleinhardt. I just need your contact information so that in the event that we need more information, or to question you again, we know where to reach you." The two men gave him their numbers and addresses, and after they were noted down, they watched him walk away to speak with another person.

"You okay, Charlie? Larry?"

"Fine. We're fine. It's just tragic, what's happening. I mean, who would take such a lovely girl?" Larry asked, looking disheartened and confused.

"Don, I should have checked earlier. I knew there was something wrong when she didn't show up on time. She's _always_ on time. If I had gone earlier, maybe…"

"Charlie, it's not your fault. You don't know when she was taken. They'll find her, don't worry." Don looked at his brother's dejected face, filled with guilt. Glancing at Larry, he said, "We should leave. Let the police do what they have to. We're just in the way". He said this in an attempt to get them moving, and to try and get Charlie to stop staring at the doorway to Emily's room.

As they made their way towards the stairs to leave, Don overheard the same detective talking to a woman staying in room 302, four doors down from Emily. "I didn't notice anything, but there was that commotion over on the other side of the corridor. There was so much yelling. A guy was mad because the maid had walked in when he was busy doing something, or whatever. He kept shouting and waving his hands saying that she should have knocked. She was crying, telling him that she had but he hadn't answered the door. It got everyone's attention. The guy was really pissed."

Charlie must have noticed that Don had slowed his pace because he stopped and looked at him. Don shook his head, indicating that he would tell him later. They continued on their way and a few minutes later, they were standing outside. Larry gave Charlie a worried smile and told him that he would see him tomorrow and to let him know if he heard anything. Nodding that he would, he watched his friend walk towards his car.

Don grabbed his arm and lead him to his SUV. "Come on, I'll take you home."

They got in the vehicle and Don pulled out.

"Why did you stop? Earlier, on our way out?"

"I heard what one of the guests was telling that detective. There was a big fight at the end of the corridor, a few hours ago. I'm betting that it was done to cover something up, possibly Emily being taken. It's a classic method of distraction… it gets the attention of all of the guests on the floor and pulls attention away from something else that could be happening, on the opposite end of a long corridor."

When Charlie made no comment after his explanation, Don asked, "Charlie, are you okay?"

"I'm just worried about Emily. I hope she's alright. She must… she must have struggled to get away and whoever took her hit her. There was a lot of blood and… and her handprints on the baseboard. She must have tried to crawl away from…" His voice trailed and he turned to look out the window, squeezing his eyes shut in an attempt to not cry.

"Charlie, do you know anyone who would want to take her? You said over the phone that you thought that there was something going on? You don't think this is just a random act of violence?"

Charlie shook his head. He hesitated a moment before speaking. "Over the last couple of days, I've felt, weird, like someone was watching me. I noticed it right after I went to lunch with Emily. I… It just feels like she was taken for a reason. I think, I think maybe it was because of me."

"What? Charlie, you can't blame yourself!"

"But, Don, what if, what if they did it because they saw her with me and they wanted something from me… or…?"

"Charlie, I'm sure it wasn't because of her connection with you. You said so yourself, you hardly ever see her. I mean, if someone was targeting you and wanted to take someone close to you, they would more likely take Dad or me. Or even Larry or Amita. Not that I want them to be taken."

"Yeah, you're right. It's just… I really feel like someone's been following me for the last few days."

"Did you see anyone? Or anything unusual?"

"No, no it's just a feeling. Never mind, it's probably nothing."

"Charlie… Look, I'll try to find out whatever I can but unfortunately, I don't have any jurisdiction over the case; it's a matter for the LAPD. I'll do what I can. I'm sure Emily's fine and they will find her." Even as Don said the last sentence, he knew it lacked conviction. The words sounded hollow even to his own ears.

"Yeah, thanks, Don." Silence filled the car as Don continued the drive to the house. When he reached the driveway, he cut the engine and looked over at Charlie.

"Listen, we don't know what happened to Emily. Maybe, maybe whoever took her will bring her back or… There's evidence at the scene, maybe they'll solve the case before anything bad happens to her."

Charlie nodded, not believing a word. He had worked on enough cases with Don to know that the probability of her being found alive was small. He tried to block out the images of some of the victims he had seen in the crime scene photos that Don hadn't managed to remove from the files that he worked on. He tried to not to picture Emily's face on their bodies.

"I'm fine, Don. I'm just… I'm just going to get some sleep. I appreciate you coming and trying to find out what you can."

Don watched helplessly as Charlie made his way to the front door. He didn't know whether to go after his brother or not. There were no words that he could give him that would provide much comfort at this point. He hoped fervently that Emily was alright, but like Charlie, he felt that her chances were not very good.

-----

Charlie lets himself into the empty house. Alan was out for the night with his friend Stan, working on a project for one of their clients. Charlie turned to the window and saw Don pull out of the driveway and he continued to watch as his headlights faded into the night. He was glad that Don decided not to come in with him. He didn't know if he could take his platitudes and empty reassurances that Emily would be alright without breaking down.

His mind raced with questions. Who would have taken her? Why would they have taken her? Was it really just a random act of violence or were they targeting her? Did they kidnap her for some specific purpose, or was she taken… just because she was there?

Worry and grief made his heart pound heavily. Knowing the most tried and true method of getting himself to stop dwelling on his terror, Charlie turned left sharply and opened the door to the garage. He stood in front of his chalkboards and tried to suppress the feeling of dread he had for his friend's well-being. Over-come with the heavy feeling of despair, he picked up a piece of chalk and started to write.

Slowly, as he became absorbed in the numbers, he allowed himself to forget the hopelessness that was weighing him down.

-----

Don walked into the office the following morning, tired and worried. He had spent a restless night at his apartment, trying not to worry about Emily and Charlie. His brother had looked so shell-shocked when he had dropped him off. He regretted not staying with him, but really did not know what he could have said that would have made him feel any better. He supposed his father was right; there were definitely times when having a sister in the family would have been helpful.

Colby and David came over to see him in the break room as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

"Don, what's going on? Is everything alright with Emily?"

Don stirred his drink, shaking his head. "The police were already there when I got in. They were questioning Charlie about what he knew. Emily is gone; there was blood in the room and signs of a struggle. The police were talking to all of the people on her floor. It… it doesn't look good."

"How's Charlie taking it?" David asked, knowing how sensitive the young genius could be. He remembered the incidence with the Charm School Boys and how devastated he had been when Don had got shot.

"Charlie's… Charlie is blaming himself. He thinks he should have checked on her earlier. I tried to tell him that it wasn't his fault, but…"

"Yeah, I know what you mean. He really takes everything to heart."

"Is everything alright? What's going on?" Megan asked as she entered the break room to grab her own cup of coffee.

"It's Emily. She was abducted yesterday, and there are no signs of where she was taken. Charlie…"

Nodding sympathetically she replied, "Yeah, Larry called me last night. He was really upset. There are no leads as to what happened or why?"

Don just shook his head and refrained from making any of his usual comments whenever she mentioned Larry. He noted that neither men said anything either.

"Well, if they find out anything or if we could help in any way, just ask." Everyone nodded at Megan's suggestion.

"Thanks guys. We're just going to have to wait it out."

The group headed off to their own desks. Don shifted through some paperwork and tried to concentrate on completing several reports that had been sitting forgotten in his "to do" box since before they had started work on the East LA Street Gang case. After a few hours, he managed to finish the majority of them when his desk phone rang.

"Eppes."

"Donnie, it's your dad. Is something going on with Charlie?"

"What? Why?"

"He's in the garage. Don, he's been there all night. I didn't even know he was still home until I went out to trim the hedges and saw his bike still here. He called in sick to work."

Rubbing his eyes, Don recounted what happened last night.

"Oh, no. That poor girl. Who would do such a thing?"

"We don't know, Dad. Charlie is blaming himself and… I'm actually really worried about him."

"Poor Charlie. I'm going to try and talk to him. Maybe you can come by later after work, talk to him, too."

"Yeah, I'll be there. Tell him… tell him they're doing everything they can."

Don said good-bye to his father and gently hung up the phone. He hoped his dad could get Charlie to open up a little bit.

-----

Alan Eppes watched his son writing frantically on the board. It seemed like Charlie was trying to exorcise some inner demon, as he feverishly jumped from one board to another, his body constantly moving and his hand scrawling out numbers and letters. He knew his son was upset after Don told him what had happened to his friend, Emily. Even though Charlie hadn't said anything about his feelings for the young researcher, he knew that he cared for her deeply, even if only as a friend. The idea that someone had taken her and, possibly hurt her, was most likely eating away at him.

Walking quietly towards his son, he put one hand on his shoulder and the other stilled the frenzied hand holding the chalk.

"Charlie. You have to stop."

"I… I can't, Dad. I'm following a significant train of thought and if I stop working then I'll lose it and I might never get it back."

"Son, you have to stop. You're going to make yourself sick."

"No, no I won't. You see, if I figure this out, then, then… then I can figure out everything else. And then I can find Emily."

Alan felt the anguish rolling off Charlie and he held back his own sadness. This is what it had been like when his wife had gotten sick. Charlie had lost himself in the numbers, trying desperately to solve the unsolveable. He hadn't understood it then, and had been so angry with him, but now… now it made sense in a way. He still didn't understand it, but he could accept it.

"I know you're worried about Emily. I wish that I could tell you I know where she is or that I could promise you that she's alright."

"She IS alright. They'll find her and everything will be okay." Charlie's voice was raw with grief.

"We can hope, Charlie. We can hope." Alan took the chalk out of Charlie's hand and placed it on the ledge of the one of the chalkboards. Charlie swayed slightly and Alan took a hold of him, and lead him towards the couch at the back of the garage. He sat down with his son and took his hands in both of his.

"Listen to me, Charlie. The police are doing everything they can to find her. You have to let them do their job."

"But… but what if they don't find her? Or they find her and she's, she's…" He could not bring himself to finish the sentence.

"If she is," Alan paused, also unable to give voice to the worst of their fears, "then you go on. You put one foot in front of the other. You remember how to smile again, how to laugh again. You remember her."

"I don't want to have to remember, Dad." Charlie's voice cracked on the last word, and he bowed his head.

Alan could feel the salty tears fall onto their clasped hands. His heart wept for his son and for the memories that were re-surfacing inside of himself. "It's okay, son. Whatever happens, eventually, everything will be okay."

"I'm scared for her."

Letting go with one hand, Alan put his arm around his son. "I know. I know. I'm scared, too."

Charlie leaned into his father, put his head on his shoulder and finally gave in to the grief that had been clogging his throat. Alan shut his eyes tightly as tears emerged from his own eyes, and he rocked his little boy, back and forth, and held him while he cried.

-----

"Dad? Charlie?" Don walked into the house, a little later than he had expected.

"We're in here, Donnie."

Don made his way into the dining room to find his father and brother sitting at the table, just about to eat.

"We didn't know when you would get here, so we thought we would start without you."

"Did they find anything out?" Don noticed his brother's hopeful expression.

"I'm sorry, buddy. I talked to the detective in charge of the case and they're suspecting foul play, but they have no real leads."

Nodding grimly, Charlie looked back down and stared at his plate.

Don sat down and helped himself to some food. The tone in the air was much more subdued then at their recent dinners together. He could see that Charlie was just pushing the food around, but not actually eating anything. He was about to say something about it when there was a knock at the door.

Charlie's head whipped up, a look of abject terror on his face at the possibility that it could be bad news about Emily. Alan made a move to get up when Don shook his head, and went to answer the door.

Steeling himself for bad news, he opened the door and was surprised to see two individuals in military uniform standing before him.

"We're looking for Dr. Charles Edward Eppes."

"Whom may I ask is looking for him?"

"I am Colonel Peter Haldale and this is Lieutenant John Pike. We're representatives from the National Security Agency. We need to speak to Dr. Eppes about an important matter that has recently come to our attention." Colonel Haldale presented identification for Don's inspection.

After looking it over, Don schooled his face to hide his emotions, and allowed the two men in. Charlie got up from the table and made his way to the door.

"I'm Charlie Eppes. Would you like to sit down?"

"We need to speak with you in private. We apologize for interrupting your dinner. Is there somewhere we can go where we won't be interrupted?"

"Um, sure. Just follow me." Charlie looked a little scared, but lead the two men to the solarium.

Don and Alan shared looks of shock. Watching the three leave their presence, Don couldn't help but wonder what the NSA wanted with his brother, and if it had anything to do with Emily's disappearance.

-----

_A/N: Sorry for the delay with the chapter. I really thought I could get it done earlier. The plot is finally starting to thicken. I hope you enjoyed this installment. As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are always welcome. Thanks!_


	6. Chapter 6

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

_A/N (for reference): I am not entirely clear of the precise layout of the Eppes' house, so please indulge my imagination. I have placed the dining room in close proximity to the solarium. I apologize if this is incorrect._

-----

Don and Alan stayed in the dining room after Charlie went to talk to the two men. They pretended to eat, but both were straining their ears in an attempt to hear what was going on in the next room.

Snippets of the conversation could be overhead, with words such as "kidnapping", "terrorist attack" and "biological agent" drifting to their ears.

Worried brown eyes met across the table as father and son completely gave up the pretense of eating in the hopes of hearing something more. They heard Charlie's sharp cry of distress in response to something one of the officer's had said, but then the murmuring became softer and no other words were distinguishable.

A few minutes later, a shaky Charlie emerged from the room, followed by the two men.

"We'll see you tomorrow, Dr. Eppes," said the larger of the two men as put his cap back on. "Again, we apologize for disrupting your dinner," he directed his comment to both Don and Alan, who had picked up their utensils and were making a show of eating.

"I, um, am sorry that I didn't introduce you. Colonel Haldale, Lieutenant Pike, my father Alan, and my brother Don."

Alan gave a weak smile, but Don said nothing, merely got up and walked towards his brother. When he reached the trio he instinctively placed himself in front of Charlie, partially shielding him from the two men. He stared grimly at the NSA personnel and gave them an indiscernible nod.

Haldale and Pike looked at one another and a silent exchange was made between the two men. Charlie peered over Don's shoulder and looked from one man, to the other, wondering what was happening. Finally, an agreement seemed to be reached between the two and Pike turned to the two brothers.

"Special Agent Eppes, we would appreciate it if you would attend the meeting tomorrow with your brother. It will be at 0900 hours at 1492 Oakland Terrace, Suite 100." Without waiting for a response, the two men turned and exited the Eppes' home.

Charlie looked after them in surprise and started to say something, but Don stopped him with a touch of his hand. "Come on, let's finish dinner."

Charlie was even more startled at Don's calm demeanor, but automatically walked back to the dining room table. He watched his brother pick up his fork and looked at his dad, who had a bewildered expression on his face.

"Charlie, what's going on? What did those two men want? Why are they asking your brother to go with you?" Anxiety filled the older man's voice as it got louder and louder after each question.

Charlie, who had once again been picking at his food, pushed his plate aside and looked at his dad. "I wish I could tell you what they were here for…" His voice cracked and he tried to clear it. "There's something that I have to do for them. Don, the meeting tomorrow…. I… I think they will debrief you then. I don't know what information I'm supposed to say or not say. I… I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Dad, I just can't tell you anything."

Don rushed to assure him, "It's okay, Buddy." He felt the piercing gaze of his father, but ignored it for the time being, still staring at Charlie.

Charlie rubbed his face tiredly and pushed his chair away from the table. "I'm going to bed. I haven't slept since yesterday and I want to be alert for the meeting tomorrow."

"Yeah, Buddy, you get some rest. I'll drive us both there tomorrow."

Once Charlie had left the room, Alan caught Don's eye.

Shaking his head, Don responded to the silent inquiry, "I don't know what's going on, either. But, I'll find out. Don't worry, Dad. I'll take care of him." He silently hoped that he could live up to that promise.

-----

The next morning, Don arrived to pick-up Charlie. His brother was sitting on the couch, book bag by his feet and his laptop in front of him. He was touching the monitor with one of his fingers, with a look of sadness etched on his face.

Walking over, Don bent down to see what Charlie was looking at. It was a picture of Emily and Charlie, taken a number of years ago. Charlie must have been 22 or 23. His hair was much shorter than, so short in fact that it didn't even curl. He had his arm around a smiling Emily, hair in a ponytail, carrying, oddly enough, a beaker and a pipette in her hands. He could see more lab equipment in the background, and several older individuals in lab coats and goggles.

"When was this taken?"

Charlie immediately snapped the laptop closed and sat up straighter. "Don, I didn't notice you came in," _or I would have turned off the monitor sooner_, he added silently

"Was that picture taken when you two met?"

"Yeah, we were, um, somewhere. Look Don, just forget you saw that, okay. Please?"

Looking at the pleading look on his brother's face, he agreed. Trying to lighten the mood he said, "You know, one day Chuck, you're going to tell me everything."

Charlie, recognizing Don's attempt at humor, replied dryly, "I have no idea what you're talking about, _Donald_."

Grabbing Charlie's bag off of the floor, he held out his other hand to help Charlie up. "We have to get going. I already called in to work to tell them that I had to be somewhere else. Not surprisingly, they already knew."

Charlie's mouth titled up, "Yes, well, the NSA is very good about details".

Don rolled his eyes, "Yeah, no kidding".

They left for the meeting and made it to Oakland Terrace in good time. Don and Charlie arrived at the building, where they had to go through security and obtain visitor's passes. Don was asked to leave his gun. He showed the security guard his badge, but was still told that he would not be permitted to take it into the building. Unhooking his holster, he left it with them, accepting the claim ticket.

Walking towards the suite, Don noticed the absence of his firearm immediately. It was his constant companion and gave him a sense of security; he felt naked without it.

Colonel Haldale met them at the door and ushered them inside. The office was spare, with only a large desk in the middle of the room, with chairs surrounding it. Already seated were Lieutenant Pike, another military woman, and three individuals in suits.

"Now that everyone is here, we will apprise you of the situation. I am assuming that Charlie has kept his oath of confidentiality and has not disclosed any information to you, Special Agent Eppes. Am I correct?"

Trying not to feel insulted that they would question Charlie's integrity, he responded without hesitation. "No, he hasn't told me anything. He said that he didn't know what you would or would not divulge to me and knew it was not his place to say anything. I didn't push him."

Nodding, he gestured to two of the seats.

"We contacted Dr. Eppes yesterday because we were informed by one of our operatives, that Dr. Emily Winters was taken from her hotel room two nights ago." Haldale paused as he went over to the far end of the table, picked up a remote and engaged the small device at the centre of the table. Don recognized it as a frequency jammer used to distort sounds, in the event that there were any listening devices in the near vicinity. Don shot a quick glance at Charlie, but his attention remained on the speaker.

"Dr. Winters has been working at the CDC for the last 8 years. Her work with them began because of her involvement in a project we had based in Kandahar. We had received numerous communications at that time about a possible biological threat. We needed an investigative team to assess the threat, which required a scientist who specialized in air borne pathogens. We also needed a mathematician to help decipher some of the coded messages that we had intercepted." Don's eyes narrowed at the last statement, and again, he looked over at his brother. Charlie's face remained impassive, but he could see his leg beginning to shake, and his left hand flexing, signs that he was anxious about something.

Looking back at Haldale, he noticed that his gaze had settled on him. Nodding for him to continue, Don reminded himself that he had to be objective and listen to everything that was being said. He was clearly there for a reason, and he needed to find out what that was.

"Dr. Winters was working to develop a means of detecting airborne anthrax. The anthrax bacterium, _Bacillus anthracis_, consists of spores that can be inhaled and lodge into alveolar spaces. Macrophages ingest the spores and transport them into the lymph nodes where they multiply and spread throughout the body. No reliable method exists for detecting these biological agents once they are released into the atmosphere. Any attack that uses this biological agent can only be detected once persons develop symptoms. Unfortunately, inhalation anthrax is almost always fatal once the symptoms appear."

Don's eyes widened at the mention of anthrax, and terror gripped him as the implications of what he was being told began to pierce his mind. He felt Charlie shift in his chair and saw him put his hand towards his face. Don guessed that he was biting his fist, something he had always done when his brain was working on overdrive or he was dreading something.

"Recently, Dr. Winters was appointed head of a research team looking into the protocol to deal with a possible bio-terrorist attack. Her knowledge is extensive, not only about the disease pathology, but also about dispersion techniques and what to do for citizens to _prevent_ infection. Her team is very close to developing an **anthrax vaccine; although one currently exists, its effectiveness against inhalation anthrax infection is questionable."**

**"As of yet, n**o faction has taken responsibility for her kidnapping, but there have been threats over the last month or so regarding a mass anthrax attack. We took the threats seriously and were looking into it, however, no immediate danger was suspected until Dr. Winters was taken."

"Emily's research, as highly sensitive information, was encrypted using an algorithm helped developed by Dr. Eppes when they worked together for the NSA." Haldale turned and addressed Charlie specifically. "We need your help to decrypt it, in order to gather the information to determine the most likely areas for a possible attack."

"What about Emily?" Charlie asked.

"Our best bet to find Dr. Winters is to identify who has been making the threats and determine what they are planning to do."

"Wait a minute. How do you expect Charlie to figure this all out? He can decrypt the information, no problem, but how do you expect him to find a location based on her data and a few veiled threats. Do you have any idea who _they_ are and where they are planning to strike? This is a large country and there's no guarantee that the attack will even be on US soil."

One of the suited men seated at the far corner of the room, who had been silent throughout the entire debriefing, spoke up, "That is where we come in. We will be aiding Dr. Eppes. My name is Karl Porter and my colleagues, Amanda Baker and James Burke. We are part of an investigative team that works in conjunction with Homeland Security and the NSA, specializing in acts of bio-terrorism. Once we have the data, we will be able extrapolate from it and, with Dr. Eppes' help, build a working algorithm that will predict the mostly likely candidates for attack. Lieutenants Pike and Anderson," here, he gestured at the remaining people at the table, "are head of the investigative team that was in charge of following up on last month's threats."

Don nodded, trying to assimilate all of that information. "What do you need me for?" Now that he knew what role everybody was playing, he could not figure out how he fit into this.

Lieutenant Pike stepped in. "Dr. Eppes' NSA file is exemplary. His extensive work for the FBI has not been missed by us and we know it is largely due to your influence, Special Agent Eppes. We've pulled your file as well, and you have a flawless career record. You both work well together and handled the case involving the Spanish and Avian flu viruses skillfully, without causing a mass panic. Your teamwork is notable and we're hoping, that by working together, you can get it done that much faster and find Dr. Winters before something tragic happens, to her or the citizens of the US. The combination of your investigative skills and your brother's analytical mind has gained our attention. You also have a way of keeping your brother on track."

Charlie, shocked, began to say, "You know about…"

Colonel Haldale cut him off and simply told him that they have been keeping a close watch on both of them. Charlie and Don exchange a quick glance, both of them thinking of how disturbing that was.

"Dr. Eppes, Emily's files are on these two data CD's. We cannot stress enough the importance of preventing anyone from seeing the information, encrypted or not. Do not trust anyone blindly. No one, unless they have top security clearance, can see this. That includes your brother."

Charlie opened his mouth to protest, but Don interrupted him saying, "No, he's right. The fewer people who know about all of this, the better." Charlie nodded his head and reached out his hand to take the disks.

"We have obtained all of the information pertaining to Dr. Winters' abduction from the LAPD. Agent Eppes, you and your team are now taking over the investigation. I would also like to stress that although you can tell your team about Dr. Winters' anthrax research and its probable relationship with her abduction, you cannot fully disclose all of the details we have just given you. This is all _highly_ classified information. We have written out a packet of information that we feel is pertinent to tell your team. Anything else would be too risky."

Don accepted the package of information one of the people handed to him. Gripping it tightly in his hand, he looked at his brother. He was clutching the disks in his own hand and looking at Don with fear and worry written plainly on his face. Walking over to him, he put his hand on his shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly. Bending down, he whispered in his ear, "It will be okay, Charlie. You _can_ do this. _We_ can do this. We _will_ find whoever took Emily and she _will _be alright."

Nodding, Charlie closed his eyes and swallowed the lump in his throat. "We better get started."

-----

_A/N: So, now you know the story behind how Charlie and Emily first met. I hope that the title of the story makes a little bit more sense now, too. I will try to write another chapter by the weekend. I apologize for any verb-tense errors. I am trying to double and triple-proof read my work before posting, but I still miss some of them. Also, there seems to be a problem with font (there are words in bold that should not be); I have no idea how to fix it. Sorry! As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are always welcome. Thanks!_


	7. Chapter 7

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Don and Charlie thanked Colonel Haldale and Lieutenant Pike who tell them that they will be in contact again shortly. Karl Porter and Charlie schedule a time to meet in a couple of days' time; in the interim, Charlie will work on decrypting Emily's data. While Don waited for Charlie, he discussed with Haldale the specific information he was allowed to impart to his team. He was slightly uncomfortable about withholding information to the people he worked with, but knew that it was in the best interests of everybody. He truly believed that the less people knew, the better, and safer, they were.

Once Charlie and Karl finalized their plans, Don and he made their way towards the front doors. There, they relinquished their visitors' passes and Don exchanged his claim ticket for his gun and holster. Once they were strapped around his shoulder, he felt a little bit more comfortable, and less vulnerable.

"Charlie, where do you want me to drop you off? I think that it would be safer for you to go back to the FBI office and use one of the conference rooms there. No one will disturb you and the data will be safer if it stayed within a secure location."

Charlie nodded. "Thanks, that's a good idea. I'm going to call the university, talk to the Dean and see if I can have someone take over my classes for a little while. I'll explain that I need some time off because of what happened to Emily. I'm sure that they will understand."

Arriving at the FBI office, they made their way to Don's floor. Don booked two conference rooms, one for Charlie and one for his team. After showing Charlie which room to use, he watched his little brother set up his laptop. Don made up a "Do Not Disturb" sign for the door and told Charlie to keep it locked whenever he worked on the data. Charlie waved him off telling him he knew what to do. Don closed the door figuring that, if anyone knew how to protect data from prying eyes, it would be a man who could encrypt and decrypt sensitive information as easily as most people could sign their name.

-----

Don approached the group of desks that housed Megan, David and Colby and called their names to get their attention. Looking around to make sure that there were no other agents within hearing distance, he bent down and told his team that he needed to speak with them in conference room 4. The three faces mirrored their curiosity over Don's secrecy as they got up to follow their boss.

Once they were all in the room, Don quickly closed the door and shut the blinds.

"Don what's going on? Why all the cloak and dagger stuff?" Colby asked, leaning against one of the tables.

"Sorry, I'd just rather be safe than sorry. Last night, two members of the NSA came to the house to talk to Charlie. This morning, I attended a meeting, with Charlie, to discuss the abduction of Emily. It turns out that it wasn't a random act of violence. We are now heading the investigation of her kidnapping. What I tell you cannot leave this room." He looked at each of his agents in turn.

They all recognized the seriousness of the situation and nodded mutely.

"Emily Winters was part of an NSA team responsible for developing a vaccine against inhalation anthrax infection. The NSA suspect that she was captured for what she knows. The information in her possession can be used to plan an effective bio-terrorist attack with the potential to kill hundreds of thousands of people, depending on the scale of the attack."

Silence followed Don's brief description of the situation. David was the first to react.

"Are you telling me that that sweet girl who totally wiped the floor with us playing basketball at Charlie's was taken because of her extensive knowledge on biological terrorism?"

Don nodded grimly. "I have all of the evidence collected from the scene at the hotel. There's not much, some video feed of the hotel, witness statements, some debris left in her hotel room and her personal effects. I want us all to familiarize ourselves with what's in this case log so that we can develop a plan of action with which to proceed. I cannot stress enough how important it is that we close this case quickly."

Colby, having flashbacks of some of the things he had heard about in Afghanistan about inhalation anthrax, got up and picked up one of the files. "Let's get started."

-----

Meanwhile, in the other room, Charlie waited while his computer booted up, fingering the data CDs in his hand. A part of him was absolutely terrified that he wouldn't be able to decrypt the information quickly enough; perhaps Emily had changed the algorithm to such an extent that it would take him days to work through it. And he didn't have days.

Actually, he didn't know how long he had. But he knew he had to work quickly; for the safety of any number of nameless people, but mostly for Emily. After listening to everything Haldale and Pike had to tell him the night before, and what they had reiterated this morning, he knew that the people who had taken Emily meant business. They would stop at nothing to get what they wanted. They were obviously on a mission, and people with missions tended to do extreme and radical things, regardless of the consequences.

He hoped that the combined efforts of himself, his brother and co-workers and the team that the NSA had put together, could find those people who had taken Emily, and stop them before they did irrevocable damage. Mostly, he just wanted Emily to be found, safe and sound.

Palms sweating, he put the first of the two data disks into his computer, and began to work.

-----

Her head was pounding and she was so cold. She struggled to open her eyes, but when she did, all she saw was darkness. Gingerly, she tried to sit up but her limbs were numb and she felt a dull throbbing all over her body. She tried to remember what had happened, but everything was a blur. She wanted to sit up and rub at the painful spot, just above her temple.

It was then that she realized that her arms were tied behind her back and she was lying on a cold, stone floor. Fear filled her as images flashed in her mind. She had been in her hotel room, packing for her trip back to Georgia and waiting for the cab to come pick her up and drive her to the faculty lunch hosted by the Epidemiology department.

Someone had knocked on the door, telling her that they worked for housekeeping and they had a delivery of flowers for her. She had looked through the peep hole and saw the flowers and recognized the uniform. She had automatically opened the door, thinking that the flowers were from the University, or even possibly Charlie.

She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the dim light. She strained her memory, trying to remember what had happened next. She could only recall glimpses after that, a man coming in, pushing her, a struggle, she tried to get passed him, something hitting her in the head, blood and then nothing.

The throbbing in her head dulled her senses and she wasn't able to gather any strength to move. She looked around the room, but all she saw were walls and the faint outline of a door several meters away. Just as she was about to try and roll herself towards the door, it swung open.

A tall man entered the room, but she didn't recognize him.

"Dr. Emily Winters, you're finally awake."

"Who are you?" She gasped. Her throat was so dry that her words came out as a croak.

"That's something you don't need to know. And you're not in any position to ask questions. Do you know why you've been taken?"

Bile rose in her throat. The gravity of her situation and the danger she was in had begun to sink in.

"Answer me!" The harsh voice filled the small, enclosed space.

Fighting back her terror, she whispered, "No, I don't."

"Think, Emily. Think long and hard. What's the one thing you know that someone would be willing to kill for?"

Realization was slow in coming, but soon enough, it dawned on her and she knew exactly what kind of information they wanted from her.

"Do you know, now, Emily?"

She refused to answer him. There didn't seem to be a point. He was toying with her.

"Answer me!"

Still she refused. Although she was horrified beyond belief, she knew that any information she gave him, no matter how small, could be used. It was one of the first things that the NSA had drilled into her head when she had first started working for them.

Suddenly a foot came out of nowhere and connected with her stomach. A punch to the head by a fist followed. Crying out in pain, she doubled over and tried to make herself as small as possible, to minimize the areas that she could be hit.

A few more blows were reigned down on her and she felt herself losing consciousness again. As she struggled to remain awake, she heard rather than saw the unknown assailant make his way back to the door.

Even as oblivion started to take her, she still heard the threat issued by her captor, "You will give us the information we want about the inhalation anthrax vaccine. You will tell us how we can protect our people or you won't live to see the outside of this room.

-----

_A/N: I couldn't resist writing another chapter. Sorry that it ends on yet another cliffhanger. I hope you all are enjoying the story. Thank you to all those who have reviewed; your comments are so encouraging and urge me to continue on with my tale. As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are welcome. Thanks! _


	8. Chapter 8

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Charlie had been working on decrypting Emily's data for the last hour. Thankfully, she had not changed the original encryption technique they had developed together overmuch so it was only a matter of him tweaking portions of the formula in order for him to determine the new algorithm used and decipher her notes. Unfortunately, once he began looking through the text and numbers she had saved, he had been overwhelmed by the sheer amount of data and number of variables he would have to deal with.

As he tried to categorize them and recode them into a more manageable data set, his frustration mounted at his inability to ascertain what components of her research would be likely candidates to analyze. It seemed ironic that whenever he worked for Don, his work was hampered by the _lack_ of sufficient data, and for this case, with a very small, critical window of opportunity, he had too much to deal with.

_In order to determine the most likely location for the terrorists to attack I need to take into account weather, wind conditions, structural landscape, population density and traffic… but where do I start? It could be any urban area within the US. Or even a non-urban area. If the terrorists' aim is to cripple the agricultural industry, hitting a farming community could have vastly devastating effects if it infected cattle. _

Charlie's thoughts began to run into one another as he began to scribble equations onto the pad of paper beside his laptop. Mumbling to himself, he leafed through some of the deciphered text he had printed out. Something caught his eye in his mad shuffling; a particular equation leaped out at him. Examining it more closely, he recognized several expressions as related to work that they had done together in Kandahar. He strained his memory to remember the specific details of that component of their work, but was unable to recall it.

Gathering his notes, he shut down his computer and put everything into a file cabinet. Don had given him the key earlier, which he attached to his own keychain. Making sure that everything was locked up or on his person, he headed over to where Don and his team were working.

"Hey, Don. I'm going to head over to CalSci. There are some notes there I want to take a look at and compare to some of the things I found on Emily's disks." He said all of this in a whisper, casting furtive glances at the other agents. If they noticed his unusual behavior, they chose to ignore it.

"Does that mean you finished decrypting everything?"

"Yeah, she hadn't changed the code very much from the one we had worked on years ago."

"Okay. Do you need a ride?" At the shake of his head, Don nodded.

"Take the data CDs, Don. I've already secured it onto my own hard drive, but I don't want these CDs to be floating around and I don't feel comfortable taking them with me. Make sure you put them in a secure location."

"No problem. Call me if there are any troubles or if you find out anything. We're still putting things together over here."

"Have you made any progress?" Charlie could not help but keep the hopeful tone out of his voice.

"Sorry, buddy. But we're working on it. I promise."

Charlie tried to hide his disappointed and nodded. "I'll be back in a little while. If you need me or anything, I have my cell. I might not get a signal in the building, so you can reach me at my office, too."

Giving a wave to the rest of Don's team, Charlie headed off downstairs to call a cab to take him to CalSci.

-----

After Charlie left, Don went back to his team to go over the evidence collected from the hotel. Don and Colby were looking through the video surveillance of the room with Colby, being the more techno-savvy of the two, manning the controls.

"There doesn't seem to be much going on, just people coming and going," Colby observed.

Don remained silent, continuing to watch the video feed.

"Stop. Stop right there."

"What? What do you see?"

"Go back a few frames. Okay, now stop. Check out the time stamp on the bottom left-hand corner. Now, go forward, frame by frame. Okay, stop again. Do you see that?"

"It jumped, by like 30 minutes."

"5:31 to 6:03. Thirty-two minutes of missing surveillance."

"How did the LAPD miss that?"

"They probably only gave it a cursory glance. They only had the case for a couple of days before we took it over."

"That half-hour gives them plenty of time to grab her and transport her back to a more secure location."

"Yeah. We're also missing that commotion several of the witnesses talked about."

"The one with the maid cart?"

Don just nodded.

"You know, Don, this skip in the video recording, that's pretty impressive."

"What do you mean?"

"The video surveillance used at Emily's hotel was top-notch. It wasn't just a camera on a wall, everything was controlled by a central database, so that the controls to stop, record or delete is all remote. It's one thing to get the camera to _stop _recording, it's even more remarkable that the kidnappers were able to restart recording after they had taken her."

"How hard is it to do?"

"Well, for a really good tech, it's difficult, but not impossible."

"What about if they had someone working on the inside?"

"Obviously, it would be much easier."

"Why don't you and David go back to the hotel and question security over there. See if you can't find anything out about the employees."

"Will do."

Don followed Colby back to the conference room and saw Megan looking through Emily's agenda book.

"You find anything interesting?"

"Yeah, check this out. She had a meeting scheduled with Dr. Flannigan a few hours before the faculty dinner was supposed to start. Why go back to her hotel room if she was already with the person hosting the faculty dinner?"

"Now that's a good question."

"The only way to find out is to ask."

The two were already making their way towards the elevators. As he grabbed his keys from his desk, Don said, "Let's roll".

-----

Don had never been to this part of the CalSci campus before. It seemed odd to be at the university but not heading over to Charlie's office. Looking at the nameplate on the door, he raised his hand to knock.

"Come in."

A tall, dark haired man in his late forties sat behind a rather large mahogany table surrounded by bookshelves filled with texts, organized in, from what Don could see, alphabetical order.

"Dr. Russell Flannigan?"

"Yes."

"Special Agent Don Eppes and Special Agent Megan Reeves. We're with the FBI."

Dr. Flannigan stood from his desk and strode forward to greet the two agents. He wore a dark brown suit, with matching tie, and plain white dress shirt underneath. All looked crisp despite the mild temperature in the room.

"Did you say your last name was Eppes? Are you related to Dr. Charles Eppes?"

"Yes, sir, he's my brother."

"I see. I had heard rumors about Dr. Eppes having a brother in the FBI. I heard that he sometimes consults for you."

Don was immediately on his guard. "Really?"

"Yes, CalSci is a small university and the rumor mill is always active, even between departments. What can I do for you?"

"We're investigating the disappearance of Dr. Emily Winters."

Before Don could say anymore, Dr. Flannigan interrupted him. "It is such a tragedy. When I heard about it, I was extremely upset. I immediately chastised myself for not checking up on her when she failed to attend the faculty dinner held in honor of the guest lecturers."

"Actually, that's what we wanted to talk to you about. We understand that just prior to the dinner, Dr. Winters had an appointment to meet with you."

"Yes, she did. She came by here promptly at 3 o'clock, just after her last scheduled lecture. I wanted to talk to her about her work. She and I were so busy throughout her stay here in California that we were not able to meet until her final day."

"So she did meet with you?" Megan asked.

"Yes, as I said, she came by at 3 and we had only been talking for half an hour when several other guest lecturers interrupted."

"And who were these other people?"

"Mark Potter, Laurence Plank and Hugh Wendle. We are co-investigators for a cross-national study currently being conducted in Washington, Kansas, Maine, Florida and California. Unfortunately, the co-investigator from Florida could not attend the series of lectures here this month. They intruded on our meeting to discuss some recent setbacks that our study has experienced. I asked Dr. Winters to stay and take part in our discussion and perhaps provide some solutions or feedback. She declined, saying that she wanted to pack for her trip back to Georgia the next day. I regret not insisting that she stay. I would have given her a ride to my home for the dinner, and she would be safely in Georgia, today."

"You couldn't have known what would happen to her if she went back to her hotel, Dr. Flannigan," Megan offered.

"Be that as it may, I still carry some guilt."

"Was there anything specific that you were supposed to meet Emily about on that day?" Don asked.

"I wanted to talk to her about her research pursuits and the paper she had just published in _Emerging Infectious Diseases_ regarding early detection of anthrax. It was quite fascinating work. I have dabbled in the field of air borne pathogens myself, but find that my real research interest lies in occupational exposures and their relation to cancer risk. I was interested in hearing what methods she used to determine early detection methods and the possibility that the same procedures could be applicable in the detection of chronic illnesses."

"And you say that you hadn't gotten a chance to talk with her before?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I was also unable to attend the lecture she gave to the graduate students in our department. I am not incredibly familiar with her work. As I said, my research pursuits lie in a different area, but she seemed like such a nice woman, that I felt remiss in not speaking with her at all during her stay in California. Once again, I must say it is a pity that we did not get to speak much longer or that I did not insist she stay for the course of my discussion with the other researchers."

Megan, sensing that there was little more information they could glean from the professor, made to end the conversation. "Thank you very much for your time. If you hear anything that you think will be useful, please let us know."

"Yes, I will keep my ear towards the rumor mill."

Don bid the man good-bye and they exited the building.

"Don, do you want to talk to the other professors and see if their stories mesh?"

"Good idea. See if they're still here or if they've already left now that the series of lectures are over. I can…" his voice trailed off as his phone rang.

"Eppes."

"Don, it's David. Colby and I are at the hotel now. It looks like a member of their security team is MIA. Sanjar Mihdizadih was supposed to work the morning shift today but he hasn't shown up at the manager has been unable to reach. We checked the security logs and get this. He wasn't scheduled to work the night of Emily's disappearance but his key card was used within the time frame that she was taken."

"Good work. See if you can't find more information about him, pull his personnel file."

"Already on it. Wait, hold on, I think Colby has found something out." David turned to Colby who had been waving to get his attention. Colby, hanging up his cell phone, turned to David.

"Sanjar Mihdizadih and his family immigrated to the US from Iran almost ten years ago. From what I was told, he still has family over there."

David relayed the information to Don. "It's possible that he has ties with a terrorist organization coming out of there."

Don told David and Colby to run down that lead and, hanging up the phone, turned to Megan to let her know what the two men had found out.

"You go and interview the other professors. I'm going to find Charlie, see how he's doing and to give him this information. I'll meet you at the car in half an hour."

At Megan's nod, they parted.

-----

_A/N: _ _I kind of feel like Captain Exposition at this point, but hopefully this chapter lays the ground work for Don and Charlie's investigation. Please note that I do not mean any disrespect when discussing potential countries/groups/etc. as potential "terrorist organizations". This is a work of fiction and I am merely telling a story to the best of my abilities. As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are welcome. Thanks! _


	9. Chapter 9

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Don headed over to the math department, silently going over the information relayed to him by Colby and David. He found Charlie in his office, sitting at his desk. Don looked over at the boards filled with his brother's distinctive scrawl. He recognized a few Greek letters here and there but the rest just looked like squiggles and dashes, inter-dispersed with letters and numbers.

"Charlie, how's it going?"

Charlie looked up at the sound of his brother's voice. His face was filled with such dejection that Don's heart went out to him.

"We'll find her, Buddy."

"It's not just her I'm worried about, Don. It's all those other people, those nameless faces that could be…" Charlie shook his head, unable to continue. "I've been going over the stuff that she had saved, compared it to the things that we worked on before. There are just too many variables to deal with; the sheer volume is overwhelming. I just don't think that I can find anything useful in the short amount of time we have."

"Maybe I can help you. One of the security guards working at Emily's hotel room is missing and his keycard was used in and around the time she was abducted. We don't know if he's involved or if his card was just taken. Colby and David are going to try and find him and do some digging. His name is Sanjar Mihdizadih and he's an Iranian immigrant. If he is involved, we suspect that he might have connections with a terrorist organization coming out from there."

At Don's news, Charlie jumped up and headed over to the boards and began to erase what he had written. Picking up a piece of chalk, he started to write out new equations to incorporate the newly acquired information.

"I talked to Larry, about the lunch we had with Emily a few days ago. He said that he didn't notice anyone or anything unusual. But, you know…"

"What, Charlie?"

"I… I'm still getting that feeling that someone is watching me. I know it might seem like I'm paranoid, but with everything that's happened to Emily…"

"It's not paranoia if it's real, Charlie. Have you seen anyone around or anything peculiar?"

"No, it's just that feeling. Maybe it's…"

Don cut Charlie off with a grunt as he picked up his cell phone and contacted his office. His mind churning, Don considered the possibility that someone had figured out Charlie's connection with Emily, both personal and professional. If someone had found out that Charlie had access to Emily's research data and could decode it, then he would definitely be a target.

As the phone began to ring in his ear he told Charlie, "I'm going to ask one of the agents to stay with you. It's just a precaution but I'd feel better knowing that there was one of my people with you at all times."

As Don stepped away to get better reception to talk to someone at his office, Charlie wanted to argue that it was unnecessary to have an agent watch over him, but was secretly relieved that Don was making the arrangements. He could not ignore the feeling of being observed and it was distracting him. He did not have time to be distracted by anything while Emily was still being held captive and the danger of a biological attack loomed.

"It's all set. An agent will be here in half an hour. I've got to go meet Megan. We're heading back to see if we can't find out more information about Sanjar, if he's involved and if he is, who his associates are."

Charlie just nodded as he continued to write on the board.

-----

Charlie stood at the board for hours, working and re-working the equations. He didn't notice when the agent arrived or how a sandwich and drink appeared on his desk. Absently, he grabbed at the drink and gulped it down.

With the new information that Don had given him, and the implications that it might have, he was able to narrow down the number of variables but it still didn't come together. Even with the reduced number of factors to look at, he could not fit them into a proper working algorithm. Without an organization claiming responsibility, it was difficult for him to come up with a point of origin or a likely location where she would be held. He had contacted the NSA group working in conjunction with him with his new findings, but they too were at a loss as how to narrow the focus even more.

Rubbing his eyes and looking at the board, he could not stop the fear from clawing at his throat. They were running out of time. Frustrated, he turned and hurled the piece of chalk in his hand against the wall where it shattered.

The noise alerted the agent who had been standing guard at the door of Charlie's office, and his friend, Larry who had been talking with him. They both rushed into the room. The agent, surmising that nothing was amiss, returned to his post. Larry approached his friend cautiously.

"Charles? Are you alright?" Seeing the look of despair on his young colleague's face, Larry deduced that there was no news about Emily.

Tapping his finger tips together in front of him, he hesitantly said, "I am assuming that there are things that you and Emily worked on together, and that she has worked on alone, that you cannot talk about. Most of which are likely related to why she was abducted."

Charlie sighed, not knowing how to respond to the statement.

"No need to say anything Charles. The answer is so plainly written on your face. Perhaps you need to take a moment and step back from this. You are obviously frustrated and judging by the number of parameters you have written on the board, I'd say that there's too much data to work with. Take a break for a moment. Maybe it will give you the much needed respite you require in order to figure out how to eliminate some of the variables or possibly reword the problem."

Angry and desperate, Charlie cried out, "I can't just take a break, Larry. People have taken her and are doing who knows what to her. The people… the people suspected of taking her are not known for their niceties. They'll kill her if she doesn't give them what they want. I have to keep going… we have to find her." He couldn't bring himself to say _before it's too late_.

His tirade over, Charlie turned back towards the board and started to write again.

"Oh, dear," came the reply from the soft-spoken professor. Looking at his friend feverishly writing numbers on the board, he was filled with dread.

-----

Someone was prodding her. In her stupor, Emily could feel someone nudging her, non-too-gently, in the ribs. She slowly regained consciousness. Her face throbbed where the assailant had punched her earlier, and her ribs felt bruised. She tried to flex her hands but they were numb, the circulation minimized because of the ropes that bound her.

Slowly, she opened her eyes and saw a large person looming above her. She tried to make out the face of the person before her but it was shrouded in a large white suit, with a face shield that caused the light to glint off of it, making it impossible for her to see their face. Emily recognized what the outfit was right away; it was an anti-contamination suit used when dealing with a deadly biological agent.

Her heart started to pound heavily as she tried to shift away from the figure.

"So, you are finally awake. Now, Emily, pay attention. Do you recognize this?"

He held up a vial in his hand filled with an indistinguishable dark powder. Emily didn't know what it was for sure, but every instinct told her that it was most likely anthrax spores. She nodded mutely but refused to say anything else.

"I want you to tell me all about that new vaccine that you have been working on. Do not try to deny it. I have my sources. I have also been informed that you are very close to perfecting it. Just share your findings with me and I will refrain from opening up this vial and releasing the spores." Her gazed was fixed on the vial and what would happen if he opened it up in this small, closed room.

Steeling her nerves, she retorted, "Why do you want it?"

"Tut, tut, tut. Do you really think I am going to dignify your inquiry with a response?" He paused, as if expecting her to answer. "I am going to leave the vial, out of your reach of course. It will give you time to think about what you want to do. Think hard, Emily." With his final words echoing in the room, he carefully placed the vial by the doorway and walked out.

When he closed the door, Emily was enveloped once again in darkness. Fear pumped through her veins. _What was she going to do?_ She thought desperately of the various options she had. Trying to calm her racing mind, she thought about the potential outcomes of each scenario and concluded that nothing good could come if she gave the people who took her any information. Even if she gave them what they wanted, the probability that they would let her live was negligible and the damage inflicted using the knowledge she had was astronomical.

She tried to stave off the feeling of impending doom and hopelessness that had settled in her chest. Her best option was to remain silent and hope that someone had noticed she was missing and was looking for her. She did not know how long she had been imprisoned as there were no windows and they had taken all of her personal belongings, including her watch. As far as could estimate, she had been taken at least two days ago. She would have been in Georgia by now, but nobody would have known as she hadn't asked anyone to meet her at the airport and she wasn't expected back at the CDC until Thursday.

She thought of her parents who, after over thirty years of marriage, had finally decided to go on a second honeymoon. They were on a month-long get-away in the Bahamas and probably wouldn't call to check up on her. They didn't even know she was in California; she didn't have a chance to tell them before they left. Her only hope was that someone at the hotel would notice that she hadn't checked-out as scheduled and looked into her suite. She was sure that there would be signs of a struggle, possibly even some blood, and that would definitely raise suspicion. Of course, there was also the possibility that they would assume she was just staying longer and continue to charge for the room.

Her only other chance was that Charlie had noticed that she hadn't gone to the faculty dinner and called to check on her. She didn't think that was very likely, but it was her only other hope. Closing her eyes shut, she sent a desperate mental plea for someone to find her, and quickly.

-----

Don and Megan were back at the FBI to find out if any progress had been made on Sanjar's whereabouts. As they headed into their unit, they were stopped by Lieutenant Pike, accompanied by an older couple.

"Agent Eppes, let me introduce you to Doug and Sheila Winters, Emily's parents. They have been on vacation and have only just arrived. They were adamant about meeting you and your team and to ask about the progress on their daughter's missing person investigation."

Don took in the couple's appearance. He could see the exhaustion and fear on their faces and noticed that Sheila Winters sagged into her husband and how Doug Winters had his arm firmly around her, as if he were the only thing holding her up from falling to her knees. A feeling of sympathy filled Don as he nodded, putting out his hand.

Doug grasped it with his free one and squeezed tightly. "Have you heard any word about out daughter?"

Lieutenant Pike interjected. "I've told the Winters that you knew Emily and that your brother was the one who had discovered her missing. They were not aware that Emily was in California, participating in a series of lectures." Don caught the subtle hint that the Winters did not have any idea about Emily's research or the possible reason behind her abduction.

"I'd like to introduce you to Megan Reeves, another agent on my team." Megan shook both of their hands. "Megan, why don't you go and prepare the conference room before I bring in the Winters to update them on our progress? If you can find David and Colby, ask them in, too, so that they can introduce themselves." He shot Megan a look, silently communicating to her to get rid of all of the details on the boards in their conference room. Megan nodded in understanding and left.

"Mr. and Mrs. Winters, let me assure you that we are doing everything we can to find your daughter. So far, we have several leads that we are following up. I had the pleasure of meeting your daughter a few days before she went missing. My brother Charlie had a barbecue at our place and she was there. She's a wonderful person. You must be very proud of her." Don stalled for time as he slowly lead them in the direction of where Megan had gone.

"Yes, we are. She's been such a wonderful light in our lives." Mr. Winters said, sadness tingeing his voice.

"Did you say your brother's name was Charlie?" Mrs. Winters asked.

They were at the door of the conference room and Don looked in hesitantly and saw that all of the documents that described Emily's abduction and any mention of anthrax or biological terrorism were nowhere in sight. The boards had also been erased. He nodded to the other agents in the room.

He lead the couple into the conference, introduced them to the other agents and asked them to sit.

"Yes, my brother is Charlie Eppes. He and Emily met a few years ago and have been in contact off and on throughout the years. As Pike mentioned, he was the one that discovered Emily was missing. He's asked me to be a part of the investigation because he was understandably worried about her and wanted to make sure that everything was being done to find her. He trusted me to do that." Hopefully his story sounded plausible and they did not question why the FBI was involved.

"That's very kind of you, Agent Eppes. My daughter has spoken highly of Charlie. She's admired his work for quite a while." Mrs. Winters said, as she stared at her hands, not meeting Don's gaze.

Patting his wife's clasped hands, Mr. Winters turned to Don and his team, "What can you tell me about Emily's disappearance?"

Don and his team walked them through what had happened, leaving gaps about her research involvement and the potential ties that her abduction had to terrorist attacks. In the middle of their recitation, a figure appeared at the door. Don looked up and motioned for Charlie to enter.

"I still don't understand. Do you think she was taken? She's such a good girl, she never hurt anybody." Mrs. Winters had silently begun to cry during the brief description.

Suddenly, Charlie was beside her, kneeling, his face level with hers. "Don and his team are the best there is, and they're doing everything they can. We will find her, I promise." Tears had started to form in Charlie's eyes as he looked at the woman with the same soft features as her daughter.

"You must be the Charlie my Emily talks about. You look just like the picture she has of you two." Mrs. Winters had reached out to cup Charlie's face in her hand. "You'll find my daughter for me."

"I'll do my best. _We_ are doing our best." He reached up to cradle her hand with his. "Your daughter is a very special woman, Mrs. Winters. We'll find her and she'll be just fine."

Mrs. Winters nodded, closed her eyes and took comfort from the young man who obviously cared about her little girl.

"Thank you, for everything you've done so far," came the gruff response from Mr. Winters who looked at the FBI team as tears streamed down his face.

"We'd like to put up a reward of some kind, for any information about our daughter. It won't be much but we want to offer something. Maybe it will give people incentive to speak up."

Charlie looked up from his position. "Whatever they put in, I'll double it," he said without hesitation.

Don nodded and could not help but marvel at his brother's generosity. He walked over to the Winters and directed them to their financial division who would help them with the paperwork needed to post a reward for information. Charlie offered to accompany them.

The trio left, with the promise from Don that he would contact them when they uncovered any new information.

Don and his team watched them walk out, shoulders slumped and their despair surrounding them like a cloak. Taking in the scene, the FBI agents felt a new resolve settle inside of them, strengthening their determination to find Emily and to ease the pain of the people walking away from them.

-----

_A/N: Another chapter completed! There is not much progress with respect to solving Emily's abduction, but I felt that a little bit of angst was needed to counter-balance all of the technical stuff that I have been writing for the last few chapters. I hope you enjoyed it and as always, comments, suggestions and reviews are welcome. Thanks!_


	10. Chapter 10

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Don and his team were reviewing all of the information that they had regarding Emily's stay in California and her disappearance. They were trying to record a timeline of her movements on the board, starting with her flight from Georgia, the lectures she had given at CalSci, up until her last known whereabouts.

Colby told the assembled group that the concierge had had a brief discussion with her that Monday morning, the day of the faculty dinner. She had asked him to call her a cab for 9AM.

"I called the cab company that the concierge said that he had phoned for her. They have a drop-off to CalSci listed in their logs for around that time."

"I talked to Professor Lisa Perkins, a professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at CalSci. She said that Emily did a guest lecture for her Epid 101 students in the morning. It's an Introduction to Epidemiology course. Afterwards, she and Emily had lunch and then Emily repeated the lecture for the afternoon class." David read from his notes.

"After that, she had her meeting with Dr. Flannigan." Megan chimed in. "That lasted for about half an hour, when it was interrupted by the other lecturers. She decided not to join the group in their discussion."

Don held up a hand to stop her recitation. "But why, though? Why wouldn't she want to be a part of that talk? I mean, even if it wasn't specific to her area of interest, you would think that she would want to be a part of a discussion of that nature. I've been around Charlie and Larry long enough to know that they talk about all sorts of research pursuits, most of which have nothing to do with their own stuff."

"She probably didn't want to sit with the good ol' boys." A hoarse voice interrupted Don's musings. It was Charlie. He looked a little worse for wear having helped the Winters at the financial division and then got them a cab to take them back to their hotel.

"That's what she called him and his ilk. Russell Flannigan doesn't like his little dominion encroached by other departments. If you look at the guest list for that _faculty _dinner, you'll notice that most of the other departments weren't invited. He's pretty set in his ways. In fact, he doesn't like female researchers on the whole and almost all of his collaborators have been men."

Megan looked up from her notes in surprise. "He didn't display any of the typical chauvinistic signs that I normally see when I conduct an interview.

"He talks a good game, but his prejudice is obvious once you spend any time with him and talk about his work. I think because you were with Don and an FBI agent, he forced himself to hide his prejudice a little bit better. When Emily worked with him, they didn't get a long at all. She was actually surprised that he invited her over to be a guest lecturer, since there's no love lost between them."

"Wait a minute. Did you just say that they worked together?" Don asked.

"Russell and Emily worked together about five years ago, when there were reported anthrax infections in DC, Florida, New Jersey, New York City, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Don't you remember it? Over a dozen people were reportedly infected when someone was sending anthrax spores through the mail."

"Yeah, I remember. But Charlie, are you sure that they worked together before?"

Charlie nodded and said, "Of course. It really got her riled because she felt that she was just as good a research as he was, possibly even more so because she had more sympathy for those who had been attacked, while he was much more callous in his approach. Why?"

Megan flipped through the notes she had taken during their interview with Dr. Flannigan. "He specifically said that he didn't know her very well. He mentioned that he was disappointed because he wanted to talk to her about some of her research and that he had not gotten a chance to get to know her at all. If they worked together before…"

"He's obviously lying. But why?" Colby asked.

Don digested the information and started to issue orders. "That's what we have to find out. I'm going to CalSci. Charlie you stay here. Try to use this information, tell Porter what you've got so far and see if you guys can't build a new model that includes his involvement. On my way to the University, I'm going to contact Pike and Anderson, see if Flannigan's name came up in their earlier investigations. Megan? Come with me. Good catch on that slip-up by the way. David and Colby look into Flannigan's involvement in that project in '01. Find out what he did, what he looked into and who else he worked with. I'm going to ask my contacts to send over his NSA file; I want to take a good, hard look at it."

With renewed determination, everyone readily stepped into action. They had finally caught their first break.

-----

_A/N: Yay! The team has caught their first break! Just so you know, I have started to write shorter chapters as the action starts to pick-up. Hopefully this means that I can update more frequently! As always, comments, suggestions and reviews are welcome. Thanks!_


	11. Chapter 11

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

The FBI team, now that they had a working theory, ran with it. Don and Megan arrived at CalSci only to be told that Flannigan wasn't there. Now that the conference was over, he was on leave for a month to work on a project. He had only come in that morning to organize his things and make sure that the professor taking over his classes in his absence had all of his prepared lectures.

The two agents found this highly suspicious, particularly as he made no mention of it during their talk earlier that day. They decided to go over to his home to see if they could catch him before he left to work on his "project".

Arriving at his house, they knocked on the door for several minutes. When no one responded, the two started peering into the windows.

"Don, it's completely empty. There's no furniture and, look over there, there are some boxes stacked in the corner."

"Looks like somebody wanted to get out of town. Let's see if any of the neighbors noticed anything."

After talking with several of Flannigan's neighbors, they found out that movers had arrived the other day and packed up what looked like the whole place. Several expressed their surprise as they had not known that that Flannigan's home had been up for sale.

"It also turns out that he's not very well liked by most of his neighbors. They said he complained constantly about any loud noises, dogs barking or if someone parked on the street in front of his house." Megan commented to Don.

"Sounds like an ideal neighbor," he replied sarcastically. "Let's head back to the office and see if David or Colby found anything out. It's getting late. Emily's been missing for almost 72 hours."

Megan nodded silently at the implications. Normally, the first 48 hours in the investigation of a missing person were the most critical. The fact that they were well passed it did not bode well.

"Megan, can you profile Flannigan for me?"

"He has a classic type-A personality. His office was immaculate, nothing like Charlie's. Everything had a proper place and everything was _in_ its proper place. His books were alphabetized, floors spotless, no extraneous papers on his desk. I noticed that he didn't fidget at all when he talked and he spoke painstakingly, he didn't even contract any of his words."

"I caught the alphabetized books. I just figured he was very organized."

"Yes, to the point of meticulous. And, thinking back, knowing what Charlie said about him, although he shook my hands and answered my questions, he made sure to direct the majority of the answers to you."

"A clearly organized mind who has very defined notions of what belongs and doesn't belong. Perfect candidate to mastermind this type of attack."

-----

They had arrived back at the office and found David and Colby in the conference room.

"Sanjar was a student of Flannigan's but dropped out of CalSci two courses short of graduating."

Don raised his eyebrows at Colby's statement. "Two courses? Something really important must have come up to drop out so close to getting your degree."

"Flannigan was part of the team that worked the anthrax cases in '01, but that was the one and only time he was brought in. From our intel, he doesn't seem to have any ties with foreign nationals."

"Well, his house is empty and he's not at the university. He can't have just disappeared like dust in the wind. Megan, you and David keep digging on his whereabouts. See if you can find any other properties that Flannigan owned, including anything under his wife's name. Colby, try to get a warrant to get inside the house. It's late in the day but there might be a judge out there willing to sign it before they go to bed." As the team dispersed, Don asked Colby where Charlie was. He pointed in the direction of the second conference room.

Don nodded his thanks and headed over to see if his brother had made any progress and to update him.

He looked in to see Charlie furiously writing on his boards.

"Flannigan's off the radar, Charlie. He's not at CalSci and his house has been packed up. He's obviously up to this thing to his eyebrows.

Charlie stopped writing and turned to his brother. "Why, though? Why would he be a part of this? He knew Emily. They may not have gotten along that well, but still. And he's a scientist; he knows the potential dangers associated with this type of mass attack. What would he have to gain by associating with terrorists and giving them information to endanger so many lives?"

"Do you think that it's like what happened with Clarence Weaver and the Spanish flu research?"

"No, it's not like Dr. Weaver and his desire to make sure that the vaccine developed is for the most potent virus. There is no more potent virus out there than the one Emily was working on. I just… I just don't get it."

Suddenly, something about their conversation triggered neurons to start firing in rapid succession in his head. New ideas began forming in his head, and Charlie turned quickly, grabbing the marker and started to write.

"Charlie, what are you doing?"

"Flannigan was in charge of the conference. He was the one who invited everyone, including Emily, which is why she was so surprised. He lured her here."

"Yes, that's what we concluded, too. He probably wanted to hit her where she was the most vulnerable, get her in a city that she has never been in, where she doesn't know anyone. I think he might have orchestrated the whole thing. He has the intelligence, the skills to do it and the opportunity."

"Don, Flannigan knew her; he knew she wouldn't want to stay for that discussion he had with those other professors. He knew she would go back to her hotel until the start of the dinner. He could have had someone else take her just before or during the faculty get-together, when he would have a solid alibi. He assumed that nobody would miss her if she didn't come to the faculty dinner and she probably wouldn't be reported missing for days. He probably didn't know that we were friends or that I would check up on her when she didn't show."

"Charlie, where are you going with this?"

"I based my calculations on the assumption that she was followed from Georgia to LA, and taken here because she was vulnerable. This changes things. If she was lured here specifically, then…"

"It's likely that whatever's going to happen is going to happen here. Charlie!"

"Not just that. Don, if my assumption that she was followed from Georgia is wrong, then maybe my other assumptions are wrong, too."

Don watched as Charlie's hand became a blur, writing out his usual slew on mathematical jargon. Don tried to make out what he had written, but none of it made sense to him.

"Okay, you follow your train of thought and work on that. Let Porter know what's going on inside your head. He'll understand it much better than I will. I'm going to go help the others figure out where Flannigan may have gone. If we can find out his hide-out, we may be able to find Emily."

-----

_A/N: Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I am trying to fill any plot holes that I see, but if anyone notices anything out of sorts or have suggestions, please let me know. Things are starting to move and we're getting closer to finding out how it all will end. Will the vial inside of the chamber Emily is being held in be opened? Will she become infected? Will Charlie, Don and his team find the kidnappers and stop an anthrax attack? Stay tuned! _


	12. Chapter 12

Beware the Air

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

_A/N: Please note that there's a spoiler for the season 2 finale in my author's note at the end. Please do not read it if you have not seen the episode._

-----

After a couple of hours of working at the boards, Charlie's vision began to blur. Glancing at the clock in the room, he noticed that it was well past 9 at night. He had been at the boards for much longer than he had thought. He shouldn't be surprised at how much time had passed; he was always losing track of time. Emily always teased him about it.

At the thought of Emily, Charlie sighed. He knew he had to hurry with his analysis because Emily probably didn't have much time left. He knew, deep down, that she would never tell Flannigan or anyone else what she knew. She wouldn't want to have any part in people getting hurt.

Charlie looked at the equations he had written out. He had attempted to get his brain to think of everything with a different mindset. After his revelation during his talk with Don, he had begun to consider a new scenario that involved, not a terrorist attack against the US by a foreign agency as was his initial assumption, but by an organized group within the US itself.

Grabbing Emily's notes and a marker, he started to re-work yet another component of his newly designed algorithm, when there was a knock at the door. Looking up, he recognized the agent that had stayed with him the other day.

"Hey, um, Mark right? Can I help you with something?"

"Charlie, Don asked me to come get you. He's found something out and he needs you to meet him."

Charlie immediately put down the papers and grabbed his coat. He gathered the loose documents and put them, along with his laptop, into one of the files cabinets and locked it. He rushed to go with the agent, anxious to find out what new information Don had found. As they entered the elevator he heard Megan calling him.

He started to put out his hand to stop the elevator doors from closing, when the agent grabbed him and pushed him back.

"What? Mark, Megan's calling me. What… what are you doing?"

"Sorry, Dr. Eppes. I overheard your conversation with your brother a little while ago. I relayed the information to my superior. He thinks you're too close to figuring the whole thing out and we need more time to execute our plan. Your friend Emily is holding out on us. She has more integrity than Flannigan thought a woman could have and won't cough up the goods. I told him about the stuff you've been working on. He thinks if I give him some of those papers you have in that conference room, it'll speed up our plans considerably. I need to get to the data and to do that, I need you out of the way for a little bit."

"How did you know about my involvement?"

"The boss suspected that you were part of the team investigating what happened to Emily, considering your brother went to talk to him, and you've been conspicuously absent from the university."

Charlie began to struggle in earnest against the larger man's grip, pushing and kicking. The agent, not wanting to deal with his defensive attempts, took out the loaded syringe in his pocket and inserted it into Charlie's arm.

"Ow! What was that?"

"Just something to make you go to sleep. I'm not trying to kill you, just put you out of commission for a little while. I need people out of that office. If I killed you, people would be swarming the scene, confiscating everything and I'd never get a chance to grab anything. If I just knock you out for a little while, well, see, that will distract everybody long enough to get what we need."

"Don. Oh, G-d."

"Sleep tight," Mark murmured. Charlie felt Mark reach for the keys in his pocket and then felt his body being unceremoniously dropped to the floor. As he began to lose consciousness, his last thoughts were that he hoped his brother would figure out what was going on before it was too late to save Emily.

-----

"Damn! Where did Charlie go? I was sure that he heard me!"

"Megan, what's going on?" Colby asked.

"I wanted to ask Charlie about Flannigan's other associates at the university. His government file didn't have a lot of information, but I thought that maybe Charlie would know something about them."

"Who was that guy with him, anyway?"

"I think it was one of the agents that Don had asked to watch out for him, but I'm not sure."

Colby headed over to the room where Charlie had been working in and saw the unfinished equations on the board. "Wonder where he went off to in such a hurry?"

Megan was about to answer that she didn't know when loud voices could be heard down the hall. Louise, one of the techs they worked with occasionally, came running over to them.

"Someone found Charlie unconscious in the elevator a couple of floors down. We've called the ambulance. I was looking for Don to tell him. Do you know where he is?"

"What? Charlie! Is he alright?" Dreading an answer, Megan and Colby hustled over to the conference room where Don and David were going over data.

"He was just out cold on the floor. No one was inside with him."

"Was he bleeding or…?" Colby didn't know if he wanted to hear the answer.

"No, he was just lying there."

Don and David came around the corner after hearing the commotion "Hey, what's going…" Don's voice trailed off as he saw the expressions on their faces.

"Don, I need you to stay calm." Megan said, staring at Don's face. Something in Megan's tone alerted Don, and his heart began to pound.

"What! What happened?" Swinging around Don noted that the conference room where Charlie had been working in was empty. "Where's Charlie?"

"Charlie was found unconscious on the elevator a few floors down. We're going to see what's going on."

"Is he…"

"We don't know; we're going to check." Don followed the others downstairs, his pace quick and his mind racing. When they got to the landing and opened the stairwell door they saw that the paramedics had already arrived.

Don ran over to his brother and his heart nearly stopped. Charlie's face was ashen, his breathing erratic and he was not responding to stimuli.

"What's wrong with him?" He demanded of the attending paramedic.

"We're not sure. He was drugged, injected with something. We've collected the syringe to test its contents. We're taking him to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. You can come in the ambulance or follow in your car but we have to leave _now._"

Don nodded and ran beside the stretcher. He called over his shoulder, "Someone call my dad! Tell him to meet us at the hospital!" Don watched as they lifted the stretcher containing the still form of his brother into the awaiting ambulance. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he ducked his head and got in. Once settled, he grabbed Charlie's hand and did something he hadn't done in a long time. He prayed.

-----

_SPOILER_

_IN_

_AUTHOR'S_

_NOTES_

_FOR _

_SEASON 2_

_FINALE_

_---- You have been warned ----_

_A/N: Sorry, folks, I felt the need to hurt Charlie a little bit. Please note that the scene with the syringe was something that I had thought up a while ago when I was developing the outline for the story and the coincidence to the final episode of season 2 is just that, a coincidence. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! As always, reviews, comments and suggestions are welcomed! Thanks!_


	13. Chapter 13

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late. _

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds. _

-----

Megan gripped the steering wheel as she maneuvered her car through the late-night traffic. The conversation she had had with Mr. Eppes had not gone well. He had sounded incredibly upset over the phone and she had offered to come pick him up and drive him to the hospital. In point of fact, she didn't think he was in any shape to drive and it was easier to pick him up and drive over to the hospital with him, then to worry about whether or not he would make it in safely. Colby and David had driven Don's SUV to the hospital.

Arriving at the Eppes' residence, she saw Mr. Eppes pacing in front of the door, coat already on, wringing his hands. Spotting Megan's vehicle he rushed down the porch steps.

"Megan, have you heard anything yet?"

"No, nothing yet; I'm sorry. We should be at the hospital in about ten minutes. Traffic is very light this late at night."

Alan buckled up his seat belt and turned to Megan. "What happened to my son?"

"We aren't sure, Mr. Eppes. He's been helping us with our investigation about Emily's abduction. He must have been getting close with his equations because someone attacked him in our building."

Alan's heart leapt at the word attacked. "Is he going to be alright?" He asked this with a small catch in his voice.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. The paramedics put him in an ambulance, and although he was unconscious, he was breathing."

"I just… I just don't know what to say. I never expected Charlie to get hurt like this. I'm learning to accept Don finding himself in situations like these, but even with him being an agent for almost 10 years, I still get scared every time I don't hear from him for a few days."

"Charlie will be alright. You'll see for yourself in a few minutes."

"How did someone attack him in an FBI building? That's what I don't understand. It's supposed to be a secure location."

"We believe that Charlie was attacked by one of our own agents." Megan said this with bitterness tingeing her voice. She could not believe that one of their own had attacked her colleague and friend.

"Another agent? Megan, what's going on? What are my boys working on?"

Shaking her head she looked over at him. "I wish that I could tell you. This goes beyond me, beyond Don even. I don't know all of the details." She struggled to give him at least partial information without actually giving anything away.

Alan shook his head in misery. "I understand that you can't say anything. I'm just… I'm just worried about my sons." Wiping at his eyes, he turned his head to face forward as he saw the hospital come into view.

Megan remained silent, unable to find words to provide comfort. Instead, she reached one hand towards Alan and gave it a small squeeze of commiseration.

-----

Megan and Alan arrived at the hospital and found Don, David and Colby in the waiting room of the ER. They were still waiting to hear from a doctor regarding Charlie's condition.

Don approached his father. He could see the grief in every line of his body and he reached out to give him a hug, while whispering reassurances in his ear. His voice was hoarse from his barely contained emotions and he knew his father felt the dampness on his collar, as surely as he felt the dampness on his own. The other agents turned away from the two men, unable to witness the display of emotion from their boss.

"Is there someone here for Charles Eppes?"

Don and his father broke apart at the words and rushed up to the doctor for news of Charlie.

"We're Charlie's family. Is he going to be alright?" Alan said, desperate to hear any news about his son.

"Charlie's going to be fine. He was injected with a relatively knew street drug called the Death's Draught. It induces a temporary coma-like state. Normally we would pump the stomach as it's usually given orally, but since it was put directly into his blood stream, we're going to try to flush it out of his system. From his toxicology results, we can see that he wasn't given an extremely high dose, so we're lucking in that sense. We're hopeful that when he wakes up, he won't experience any side effects. He also has a few bruised ribs and one cracked one. We've put some binding on them, but there isn't much we can do for them except give them time to heal on their own."

"A coma? Side effects?" Alan asked.

"It's more like blacking out or losing consciousness. Death's Draught has been known to cause hallucinations, impaired motor controlled and possible memory loss. We won't know if your son will experience any of these until he awakens. We're hopeful that he won't display any of these side effects as his dose was relatively mild. We're hopeful that he'll awaken in the next 18 to 24 hours.

"18 to 24 hours!" Don exclaimed.

"It's the progression of the drug, dependent on dose."

"Can we see him?" Alan asked.

"Yes, they're just finishing inserting the breathing tube. Unfortunately, your son's ability to breathe has been affected by the drug. A nurse will come out shortly and take you to see Charlie. I warn you that he won't be responsive and he has bruising around his face, probably caused when he was thrown to the floor by his attacker, so please don't be alarmed."

Nodding, Don turned to his father and they exchanged another hug, this one of relief.

As they waited for the nurse to come and get them, Alan asked Don, "Donnie... Can you tell me what's going on?"

Trying to rub the weariness out of his eyes, Don turned to his father. "I'm sorry, Dad. There's not much I can tell you other than what you already know. Charlie was attacked in our building and we think it might have had to do with Emily's disappearance. I wish that I could tell you more."

Seeing the guilt in his son's eyes, Alan nodded and touched Don's shoulder. Rubbing his son's upper arm up and down, as if trying to ease the load on his shoulders, Alan refrained from asking for more information.

As Don sat in the waiting room chair, with his father's calming presence easing his aching heart almost as much as the doctor's words had, his mind went over everything that happened in such a short period of time. He couldn't wrap his mind around it. If someone was going to go through all of the trouble to attack Charlie, why wouldn't they do something more life-threatening? To have Charlie attacked in a federal building, by one of their own agents, no less, made him think that Flannigan was either extremely ballsy or was starting to come unhinged. Neither scenario sat well with him.

Suddenly his thoughts were interrupted by a hand grabbing his. Looking up, Don saw that a nurse had come to take them to Charlie's room. Nodding to his father, Don squeezed his hand and got up. They followed the young woman down the hall, passed several doors. Stopping, she gestured to one of the rooms and said that she would come by to see them out in fifteen minutes. Don nodded, but Alan had already gone into the room. Bracing himself, Don followed his father.

His footsteps faltered as he was confronted with the sight of Charlie, lying in the hospital bed. Temper warred with horror in his mind as he looked at his little brother's prone form and silently cursed the agent who had put him there. Staring at the unmoving figure of his brother, he felt his heart clench; ever since he could remember, Charlie had never been able to remain still. He was constantly moving, his hands gesturing whenever he got excited about a math problem, or his head bopping to some tune that only he could hear. Even when they were children, he had been in constant motion, his child's body trying to keep up with an adult intellect.

Don walked closer to Charlie's bed and reached over to take one of his hands in his own. Don stared at the bruises marring his little brother's face and fought down the feelings of anger and sadness that threatened to break free. He found himself gently rubbing his thumb along his brother's hand, trying to will it into its normal, frenetic motion.

Alan stood on the other side of the bed, looking down at his young son's still form and brushed a hand through his curly hair. Leaning over the hospital's bed rail, he placed a soft kiss on his forehead.

Father and son stood over Charlie in silence, each thankful that their loved one was going to be alright, yet both still shaken by what could have happened. They remained there for over a quarter of an hour, until the same nurse that had escorted them to Charlie's room came back to tell them that their time was up. Giving Charlie's hand a last squeeze, Don leaned down and whispered into his ear, "I'm going to find her for you, Buddy."

Alan and Don left the hospital room and started back towards the waiting room where Don's team was waiting. Stopping in the hallway, Don turned to his father, guilt lying heavily in his heart, "I'm sorry that this happened, Dad. I don't know how or why but, I'll do my best to make it right."

Alan reached out and grabbed both of Don's shoulders. "It's not your fault. You couldn't have known that it would happen. You trusted your agent and the blame lies with him. In fact, your brother is the one that dragged you into this. Well, now, that's a first." Alan paused and gave his eldest son a half-hearted smile. "Find whoever did this to your brother. Find Emily - that's what he would have wanted you to do. It's why he was so working hard in the first place and why someone wanted to hurt…" Alan's voice broke, and he couldn't complete his last sentence.

Staring at the anguish on his father's face, and remembering Charlie's still form and how hard he had worked to help find his friend, Don was filled with a sense of urgency and purpose. Grabbing his father in a hard, quick hug, he told him that he was going to go meet his team in the waiting room and go over everything again, to see if they could come up with any more leads.

Alan nodded, returned the hug and said that he was going to call Art to pick him up. Don asked if he wanted him or Megan to give him a ride, but he declined and said that Don needed to find whoever did this and stop them. Although Alan did not know exactly what his boys were working on, he could clearly see how important it was for Don and his team to close this case quickly.

-----

After Don parted ways with his father, he headed over to the waiting room where the three other agents stood, huddled together, talking quietly. When Don entered, they all looked at him expectantly.

Don nodded and said, "He's going to be okay. He has some bruising and you heard what the doctor said about his ribs and what Mark slipped him. He should be awake by tomorrow evening." Don gave himself a moment, pushing out the thoughts of what could possibly happen when he did wake up. He looked at each one of the agents in turn and said, "I just want to say thank you for all of your help, for looking out for Charlie and my dad. It's above and beyond the call of duty and I appreciate it."

"You don't have to thank us, Don. Charlie is one of us." David said. The others nodded. Don looked at his team and felt a quiet sense of pride in his brother, for gaining the agents' respect, and for his team, that had accepted Charlie into their circle, no questions asked.

Taking a deep breath, Don looked around the room to make sure it was empty. "As much as I would like to stay here and watch out for Charlie, we need to figure out what the heck was the point of all this. I mean, we're assuming that Mark attacked Charlie for a reason; probably because he was getting close to finding out the truth of this whole mess."

"Yeah, but why just put him out of commission temporarily and not…" David left the question hanging, in deference to Don.

Don nodded his understanding.

"Well, not only did Mark put Charlie out of commission, but it got all of us out of the FBI office," Colby observed.

The agents gaped at each other once Colby's innocuous statement sunk in and took on a whole new meaning.

They said, almost in one voice, "Emily's data files"!

-----

_A/N: My knowledge of drugs and their effects are minimal. Thanks to Emerald124 for pointing out that there are drugs which exist that counteract general anesthesia immediately. To make up for my lack of "drug knowledge", I just made one up (although, part of its name and effects are taken from Harry Potter, so please do not sue, Ms. Rowling!). The next chapter will hopefully be out shortly. As always, reviews, comments and suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!_


	14. Chapter 14

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

_A/N: I have tried to refrain from using any swear words or bad language in the story. However, I must warn you that the use of one of the "b" words can be found in the middle of the chapter. I apologize in advance if this offends anyone._

-----

The group of agents left the hospital at a run, while Don's mind raced. With all of them gone from the office, the data was out in the open. Even though Don knew that the data CDs were safe, as he had locked them up himself in a location known only to himself, whatever notes Charlie had made or printed off were in that conference room. He knew Charlie would have locked everything up, but… His thoughts broke off as he searched his pockets for Charlie's belongings that the paramedic had given him when he had been admitted. Sifting through his jacket pockets he found Charlie's cell phone and wallet, but no keys.

Swearing loudly, he got into his SUV, put the lights on and hit the accelerator.

_If Flannigan got a hold of Charlie's notes, they would know about everything that Emily had worked on. They wouldn't need her anymore!_ The thought sent shivers down his spine and he pressed down on the gas even harder, flying through the streets of LA towards his office building.

He rushed into FBI headquarters, followed quickly by the rest of his team who had also traveled there at a breakneck speed. Barging into the conference room where Charlie had been working in, he saw that there were no papers or Charlie's laptop in the room. He stepped purposefully towards the file cabinet and tried to open it, only to find it locked.

"Maybe Mark hasn't gone in here, yet," David said hopefully.

Colby shook his head. "No, the board's been wiped clean. Megan and I were here just before we found out that Charlie had been attacked. There were unfinished equations. I don't remember what they were which doesn't really matter because I couldn't tell you what they meant. But he did have the word foreign written with a question mark beside it."

Don, frustrated, started to kick at the table, his frustration palpable.

He began to pace, in an attempt to calm himself down and then grabbed his cell phone to contact the NSA and tell them what had happened. Speaking with Colonel Haldale, he found out that they had already been informed about Charlie's condition but were distressed to hear about the loss of Charlie's notes. Haldale asked him what exactly was in the notes, but Don said that he had no idea.

"It could have been everything Emily worked on, or just a bunch of numbers that only Charlie could understand," Don said into the phone. After a brief discussion of what information Charlie had already given Porter and his team, Don hung up and looked around at the people in the room.

"We need to get to the bottom of this. Let's go over what we know so far. Did you guys make any progress on the stuff that you were working on, before Charlie was… before the thing in the elevator?"

Colby recited that he had still been still waiting on the warrant for the Flannigan's home to come in, and, other than that house, he couldn't find any record of Flannigan or his wife owning any other property in California. "I also checked with the airlines, train and bus depots. No tickets were purchased under their names using any of those methods of transportation."

David added, "I forwarded their description and DMV pictures to the border guards, to make sure that they don't leave the US. I've also been trying to find the maid that was involved in the scene with the cart at Emily's hotel. Her name is Penny Lawson, but she's MIA, too. The man who was reported to have been yelling at the maid is also missing. The LAPD never found him when they did their interviews of the guests on Emily's floor. I checked with the hotel management and they said he paid his bill in cash. He also most likely used an alias to register for the room; he signed-in using the name John Smith."

_Dead end there_, Don thought briefly to himself.

Megan reported, "I was looking at Flannigan's NSA file. It was pretty sparse. He had only worked that one case in 2001. I left a few messages with his some of the contacts he had listed in his file. I was headed over to talk to Charlie and ask him if he could tell me anything about his colleagues at the university just before all of the commotion." Megan's breakdown of what she had been doing prior the incident with Charlie was cut off by her cell phone ringing. She answered the phone and turned away from the group.

The trio of men watched as she spoke quietly with the person on the other line. She turned towards them and they could see the pensive look that flashed across her face as she continued her conversation. Suddenly, she looked directly at the group and made gestures for a pen and paper, which David immediately handed to her. Walking over to the table, she began to scribble down some information and then thanked the caller.

Hanging up, she turned to the team with a gleam in her eyes. "That was Russell Flannigan's step-father. It turns out he had a younger half-brother by the name of Craig O'Hare. It's a son from his mother's second marriage. He died two years ago in a gang-related shooting. According to his dad, he was a member of the 18th Street Gang and was killed when the LA Bloods, a rival gang, had a confrontation regarding territory. 3 members of the LA Bloods and 8 members of the 18th Street gang were killed, including Craig."

At Megan's revelation, a theory started to form in Don's head. "This could be the piece of the puzzle we've been missing. Charlie was probably starting to look into the possibility that this isn't an attack by a foreign terrorist but by someone in the US who has got their own agenda. Now that we know what we do, maybe Flannigan isn't working with a foreign agency or even a terrorist organization here in the States. Maybe Flannigan is working with one of the street gangs _or_ he's waging his own war against LA. I think the second scenario is more likely as Flannigan has given every impression of being a fastidious man, definitely not a typical characteristic for an active gang member."

Don started to pace again as a plan began to formulate in his head. He started to move his hands around, unconsciously mimicking his brother's motions when describing a math problem. "We need to find out where Flannigan's base is. Let's look into any property listed under Craig O'Hare or some variant of that name with Flannigan's. David, check out any residential properties owned, rented or leased. Colby, go with industrial areas. Megan and I will look into the purchase of any equipment specifically used to process and disseminate anthrax spores. We're getting close, people. We're going to find those bastards."

------

Emily didn't know how long she had been staring at the vial in front of her. What was she going to do? She knew that her time was running out. There was no way she could tell the people who had taken her the information that they wanted. The stakes were just too high; too many lives were at stake.

She didn't know if anyone was looking for her yet, but she didn't think it would matter shortly. By the time anyone figured out where she was she would probably already be dead. Fear gripped her at the thought. She tried to stay calm, but she was absolutely terrified. Breathing heavily, she tried once again to free herself, rubbing her hands and wrists raw.

Suddenly, a noise from across the room caught her attention and she watched with trepidation as the door swung open and again, the individual in the anti-contamination suit entered, picking up the vial as he walked towards her.

"Have you made your decision, Emily?"

Stalling for time, even though she felt it was useless, she asked, "Why do you want it?"

"Emily, Emily, Emily… I have no time for chit chat. Tell me what I want to know."

Putting on a bravado that she didn't actually feel, she taunted him, "I'm not going to help you and your pathetic fantasy to take over the world".

"I am not trying to take over the world. I merely want to take back LA."

Her mind stumbled at his declaration and she groped for something to say. "Take back LA?"

She could almost hear the biting smile in his voice as he replied, "The FBI think you were taken by a hostile country making preparations for a mass biological terrorist attack. They could not be more wrong. No, I am a proud citizen of this fine country and I have been a model member of society, a pillar of the community if you will. But the filth that pervades this city; it is deplorable. All of those gangs, the violence and the drugs – so many reckless youths who insist on destroying what was once a great city, a great country. It is time we eradicated all of them. We will protect those who are worthy and kill the rest, like vermin. Now tell me about the vaccine or you will be the first casualty."

"You're sick, do you know that? Absolutely crazy!"

"No, I just have a vision, and I am willing to do anything to see it become a reality. Are you going to give me the information I want or not?"

Emily shook her violently. She made to throw herself at the unknown man, but her wrists were tied to a pipe that held her immobile.

She heard the rumble coming from the man's chest and it took a moment for her to realize that he was laughing. He slowly reached up his other hand to the vial cap and slowly unscrewed it. Emily attempted to turn away and scurry out of his reach, but he just grabbed her with his free hand. She tried to hold her breath but she knew, deep down, that it wouldn't matter because the spores were already in the room and would fill her nostrils and enter her lungs eventually. Resigned, she stopped her struggles and looked at him defiantly.

"Such a brave little soldier you are. I did not think that a mere woman could display even a modicum of courage. It seems almost a shame to do what I am doing to you, but I am no longer in need of your assistance. I have all of the information I need. One of my co-conspirators is bringing over data that your friend Dr. Eppes decrypted for us. Seems that you and he worked closely together."

"He would never give you anything!"

"Of course not. At least not willingly. He was trying to help find you; he even brought in that brother of his to help. Let me just say that he is not in any position to do much searching right now."

_Oh, G-d, Charlie_, she thought desperately.

"You should start displaying symptoms in a few days. You know as well as anyone that once symptoms set in, there is nothing that can be done but suffer a slow and agonizing death. Who knows how much time you have left? I can assure you, though, that it is just enough to really think about how you could have saved yourself, but are giving your life up for a bunch of miscreants in a city you do not even live in."

He left the room again and she slumped down, her bold display of courage completely gone. She knew it was over. Despair enveloped her and all she could think was that nobody could save her now, and Charlie, poor Charlie, was hurt somewhere or worse, having tried to save her. Curling up into a ball on the floor, she began to weep.

-----

_A/N: Wow, I ended on yet another cliff-hanger. I will do my best to get another chapter out shortly. The investigation has taken a sudden and dramatic leap forward. Thankfully, Don was able to put some of the pieces together with the clues that Charlie left behind and the legwork of his team. The question is: will he be in time to stop whatever nefarious plot Flannigan has come with? What will happen to Emily? Will Charlie awaken from his deep slumber? Stay tuned! (I have the narrator from the old "Batman" series in my head right now, so I apologize for all of the weird questions in my author's notes). As always, reviews, comments and suggestions are appreciated. Thanks! _


	15. Chapter 15

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late. _

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds. _

-----

It was 10AM, over twelve hours since Charlie had been attacked. Don tried not to think about the fact that he had not regained consciousness yet. Instead he focused on the investigation and stopping whatever plan Dr. Flannigan had in mind.

Don and his team were hard at work, running down leads and trying to track down Flannigan's location. So far, they hadn't had much luck matching any properties to Flannigan or O'Hare's name. Don and Megan, however, had hit gold in their search for purchases made by Flannigan, using his wife's credit card, of materials and equipment needed to process and disseminate the spores. Over the last two years, Flannigan had purchased enough equipment to produce and store thousands of kilos of spores.

Don was on the phone, relaying the information his team had dug up to Haldale and the other NSA personnel working the case. Porter and his team had worked straight through the night, as well. They, too, recognized that their window of opportunity to find the perpetrators was almost gone.

"Yeah, so far we haven't found any properties owned, leased or rented by him, residential or otherwise. We're doing the best we can, but it's like finding a needle in a haystack." Rubbing his weary eyes, Don couldn't help but think that he could really use Charlie's help right now. If there was one person good at finding needles, it was him.

Suddenly, Don heard a commotion on the other end of the line.

"We've got something," came Porter's excited voice.

"What? What's going on?"

Throughout the night, Porter and his team had been using the information Charlie had sent them to continue work on the algorithm he had been developing prior to his attack. Based on the new information that Don gave them, they were able to determine the most likely area of where the attacks would take place. The new algorithm took into account information that Charlie had not had in his possession: the facts from Craig O'Hare's murder investigation and the locations of the purchases made by Flannigan. Revising the model to include data on Flannigan's movements in the past and suitability of location, they were able to find a potential hot zone of three city blocks.

"We're going to get our tactical team ready and canvas the neighborhood, narrow the focus down further and hopefully bring everything to a close." Haldale began to issue orders.

"My team and I will meet you there," Don said.

"No, we're handling this."

"What? You can't leave us out," Don said angrily.

"I recognize that your team has put in a lot of man hours, not to mention the fact that your brother was assaulted in the course of this investigation, but I cannot, in good conscience let a group of FBI agents to participate in a search and seizure when there will most likely be a highly lethal pathogen in the vicinity. This type of action requires agents specifically trained for this type of situation. You'll just have to wait."

Don seethed silently but could give no valid argument against everything Haldale has just said. "Good luck. Update me on the situation when you can."

Don hung up and looked at his team, red rimmed eyes staring back at him. They were seated around the conference room, papers surrounding them and had looked up when he had finished his telephone call. He could clearly see their exhaustion.

"They think they've got them. They used Charlie's algorithm and found a hot zone. They're going to go in, secure the area and try to locate Flannigan, his associates and the anthrax spores. Hopefully, they will find Emily, too."

Colby rubbed his wearing eyes, gritty with lack of sleep. "When do we go in?"

Don shook his head. "No, the NSA is handling it." At their looks of protest, Don raised his hand. "I know what you're going to say. I said that same thing. But, Haldale explained it – there will be biological pathogens in the air, highly toxic and lethal. They need specially trained personnel for it. They'll update us when they know anything. You guys did great work. Go home. Get some sleep. I'll let you know when I hear anything."

Even through their exhaustion, his team looked at him and said, "We can wait with you."

Don saw the concern and dedication and could not help but feel affected. "Thanks, but I'm going to go to the hospital. I want to see how Charlie's doing.

Let him know that his algorithm worked. Go home and sleep. I don't know how long it will take for the NSA to execute their plan or when they'll get back to me. They may need us if it doesn't pan out."

The FBI agents gathered what they had and slowly made their way out. Don remained, staring at Charlie's empty boards. Finally, after long minutes, he left the conference room, turning off the lights with a last look behind him.

-----

Don made his way down the long hospital corridor towards his brother's room. He had seen Larry and Amita on their way to the cafeteria. They had told him Alan was sitting with Charlie and that his condition had not changed. Don clung to the fact that the doctor said he would sleep for another 6 – 12 hours.

Reaching the doorway, he looked in and saw his father sitting in a chair, legs propped up on a table, holding Charlie's hand and reading out loud from a book sitting in his lap. Remaining silent, Don listened to his father's soft, soothing voice.

"With the hierarchical approach, if a polynomial term of a given order is retained, then all related terms of lower order are also retained in the model."

Confused, Don entered the room. "Dad, what are you reading?"

Startled, Alan jumped slightly and looked over at his eldest son with a sheepish expression on his face.

"It's one of Charlie's applied linear statistical model books. This is the first one he ever wrote. I just thought that if I read it to him, he would find it comforting."

Don smiled. "Charlie's book, eh? Do you even understand what you're reading?"

Alan returned the smile. "No idea. I don't even know what all of the symbols are so I've been making them up. Hopefully Charlie won't notice."

"I'm sure he appreciates it. Must be nice for him. Math always soothed him like nothing else."

Alan removed his glasses and looked sharply up at Don. "What are you doing here? Have you found anything out about…"

"We're close. Very close. The NSA team refined Charlie's work, used the information the team and I came up with and were able to find a location. They're going in now. I thought that I would see how Charlie was doing and to let him know."

Alan nodded. Tenderly, he removed his hand from his son's and stood up slowly. He stretched and walked over to Don, who had yet to walk any further into the room. "I'm going to go sit with Larry and Amita. Let you spend some time with him." He squeezed Don's shoulder as he brushed passed him, not noticing Don's small nod.

He cleared his throat. "Hey, Buddy." He made his way towards his bedside. Feeling at a loss of what to say, standing beside Charlie's silent, unmoving form, still hooked up to several pieces of machinery, he picked up the textbook his father had left behind.

"You finally got Dad to read your book. When you wake up you can ask him if he liked it." At the words, _when you wake up_, Don nearly choked on the emotions clogged up inside of him. He carefully put the heavy textbook down, afraid that he would hurl it across the room to relieve some of his anger and fear.

He sat down in the chair that Alan had just left, his face parallel to his little brother's pale one. Reaching out, he pushed one of the damp curls away from Charlie's forehead and gently traced one of the bruises on his face.

"You're going to be alright, Chuck. The doctors say you're going to be fine. We're really close to finding Emily, so just put your mind at ease. You just have to wake-up okay."

He continued to stroke his brother's face, willing him to respond.

"You know, I don't think I say it often enough, but you did good. Really good. I'm proud of you. Those NSA people couldn't have figured out the hot zone without your algorithm. They just refined it a bit with the new information we got for them. We make a good team, you and I. Law-Man meets Math-Geek. There's no way I'm calling you The Incredible Math Hulk, though." Don laughed softly to himself.

Suddenly, Charlie began to stir.

Don paused in his ministrations, and stared wide-eyed at his brother. "Charlie? Charlie can you hear me?"

Charlie began to move a bit more. Don, excited but not wanting to leave his brother's side, reached for the call button, and pressed it frantically.

"Charlie?

As if in slow motion, Charlie's eyes began to open. Groggy brown eyes met Don's.

"Charlie! You're awake! Stay with us. I've called one of the nurses."

Charlie's lips moved silently around the breathing tube.

"No, don't try to talk. They've put something in your throat to help you breathe. You're going to be okay."

Charlie's eyes began to drift close again.

"Charlie, stay awake a little longer. Come on, buddy."

Charlie struggled to open his eyes at his brother's request, but it was a losing battle.

Two nurses hustled in.

"What happened? His vital signs spiked and we were on our way when you paged."

"He woke up! He opened his eyes. I tried to get him to stay awake a little longer but, he went back to sleep."

"I'll get one of the doctors" one of the nurses whispered to the other.

"This is a good sign, Don. He's regained consciousness. He's probably still affected by the drugs, but he's obviously coming out of it. We'll wait to hear what the doctor has to say."

Don waited anxiously as the nurse returned with a doctor in tow. He watched as the doctor checked Charlie's vitals and his motor responses.

"What's going on, Donnie?" Alan asked, coming up behind his eldest.

Don spun around, almost colliding with his father. "Charlie woke up. He opened his eyes. They're checking him out right now."

A wide grin split across Alan's face. His little boy was waking up.

The two men waited for the doctor to complete his examination. Several minutes later, she turned to the Eppes men.

"Alan, Don." She smiled at both of them. "Charlie seems to be coming out of it. Ahead of schedule I might add."

Alan's smile spread. "Charlie always had a tendency to do things ahead of schedule."

"Yes, I imagine that he would. We're going to keep monitoring him, check neurological activity. He will periodically wake up and go back to sleep for the next few hours as the drug continues to work itself out of his system."

"Do you think he'll display any of the side effects?" Don asked worriedly.

"We will continue to monitor him. It's not something that we can predict. But we are hopefully that there will be no lasting effects." She gave them a reassuring smile and exited the room.

Alan walked over to Charlie's side as the nurses finished rearranging the pillows and checking his IV bag.

"Did he say anything? When he woke up?" Alan asked.

"He, um, tried to, but he couldn't get anything out with the tube inserted."

"We're going to remove the breathing tube shortly, Mr. Eppes." One of the nurses informed him.

"Thanks, Sandy." Alan said absently, his attention completely on the sleeping form of his son.

"I'm going to stay with him for a while longer, Don. Read some more of his book. Maybe you can tell Larry and Amita what happened. We saw the nurses and doctors coming into Charlie's room. They're probably worried."

"Sure thing, Dad. He's already looking better."

Alan silently agreed and sat down again, reaching for the book Don had discarded earlier.

Don made his way out of the room to tell Larry and Amita what had happened. He thought about the words Charlie had mouthed to him when he had awakened and it made his heart lift and lighten.

"We make a good team, Don."

-----

_A/N: Sorry for the delay in updating. Life got in the way of chapter writing unfortunately. There are perhaps four more chapters left to write for this story. Hopefully I will have one or two more chapters to post today. I hope you enjoyed this latest installment. As always, comments, reviews and suggestions are always appreciated. Thanks!_


	16. Chapter 16

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late. _

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds. _

-----

Don went into the waiting room and saw Larry and Amita waiting anxiously for word of their friend.

"Charlie's fine. He's waking up. The doctor has already seen him. She thinks he'll be in and out of it for a few more hours, but he is going to be okay."

"Oh, thank goodness." Larry said. "We've been so worried about him. This is wonderful news. We were quite distressed to see the nurses and the doctor go rushing in a few moments ago."

Amita stared at Don with tears streaming down her face. "Can we see him?"

Don nodded. "Dad's with him now, but I don't think he'll mind more company."

Amita turned and practically ran to Charlie's room. Larry, however, turned to Don.

"Has there been any word about Emily?"

"We're getting closer to solving the case," was all Don could tell him.

Larry nodded in understanding and went to follow Amita.

Don gave a long sigh and took a seat. He leaned his head against the wall and closed his eyes, resting for the first time in days. He rubbed his hand against his chest, relishing the feeling of relief that had replaced the ache that he had had in his heart for the last several hours. Charlie would be alright and there was hope that this threat would all end soon.

He was pulled out of his reverie by a soft touch on his arm.

"Excuse me, sir?"

Opening his eyes, he stared into the kind eyes of one of the nurses that had been in Charlie's room a moment ago.

"Sandy, right?"

She smiled and nodded. "You look a little weary. If you'd like, we can put a cot in your brother's room and you can stay with him and rest a while. We've offered one to your father but he seems content to sit beside the bed."

"I don't want to put you out. I can just sit here for a little while longer."

"Well, if you'd like, there's a couch in the Family Waiting Room just down the hall. It has to be more comfortable than these ones."

"Thanks. I think I might go there. If you see my dad, again, could you let him know, please?"

"Of course. It's just down the hall and to your left." Giving him a last smile, she went back to the nurses' station.

Rolling his shoulders, Don got up and headed towards the room that she had indicated. He figured it would be better to stay at the hospital than attempt to drive home. He was not quite sure how he had managed to make it to the hospital in the first place.

He looked into the larger room and saw several couches, a few low tables and some toys and books in the corner. There was no one there. He took off his jacket, stretched out on the longest couch and finally, finally, let himself rest.

-----

"Don, Don, wake up."

Don felt someone gently shaking him. He cracked one eye open to see Megan standing above him, one hand on his shoulder, the other holding a cup of coffee.

"Is that for me?"

She smiled and handed him the cup as he struggled to sit up, his uncomfortable sleeping position making it a bit difficult.

"I just came in to check on Charlie. Your dad said that you were here. Have you been here all day?"

Don sipped his coffee and looked at his watch. It was after 4 in the afternoon. He must have been exhausted to have slept in the waiting room all that time.

"Yeah, I dozed off. I didn't want to risk the drive. Did you hear the good news?"

"Your dad told me. He said that Charlie woke up a few more times."

"Yeah? That's great."

"He was asking for you. And for Emily."

"What did Dad say?"

"That you were sleeping in the waiting room because you had worked all night. Charlie seemed to understand. He was vague on the details about Emily, mostly because he didn't have any. He told Charlie that we were very close and that his algorithm helped. That seemed to make him happy."

Don continued to drink the coffee, trying to give his body some much needed caffeine. "Did you get some sleep?"

"Yeah, in my own bed, unlike you. I woke up earlier than I thought that I would. I'm a bit anxious. Have you heard anything from the NSA?"

"Nothing yet."

"It's been hours since you last spoke with them. What do you think is happening?"

"Don't know. We should hear from them soon, I would think. I'm going to go check in on Charlie if you want to join me."

"Sure, Larry and your dad are both there."

As they progressed towards Charlie's room, Megan asked, almost hesitantly, "Do you think they'll find Emily?"

"I just don't know. I hope so, but…"

"Anything is possible," Megan finished for him.

They entered Charlie's room to find Larry and Alan arguing over a sudoku puzzle.

"Play nicely, boys," Megan teased lightly.

"How was your little nap, Donnie?"

"It was good. How's Charlie doing? Megan said that he woke up a few more times."

"Only for a couple of minutes each time. He asked about you and Emily. I couldn't tell him very much but he seemed happy when I told him that you were close. Are you going to stay for a little while?"

"No, I think I'm going to head back to the office. I want to find out what's going on and take another look at things, just in case their calculations were off."

Megan looked at him in surprise, but Don ignored her for the time being.

Don walked over to Charlie, who was resting peacefully, the breathing tube having been removed earlier that day. He looked so much better. He took Charlie's hand and gave it a squeeze as the others talked behind him. Don smiled as he felt Charlie's hand stir in his, almost like a flutter. It was one of the sweetest things he had ever felt – Charlie's frenetic motion, even in sleep, was back.

-----

Don headed back to his car, Megan following him.

"I just feel useless sitting around. I want to make sure we've looked at everything."

Megan nodded, knowing how real the danger still was. "I'll follow in my car. Two heads are better than one, right?"

Don gave Megan a grateful look. "Thanks."

"Anytime."

Don got into his SUV and headed back towards the FBI office, his mind and body refreshed. Turning a few blocks from headquarters, his cell phone rang.

"Eppes"

"It's Haldale. We've secured the location and found Flannigan's team and stock of spores in a factory. We've confiscated thousands of kilos of anthrax spores. We have eighteen people in custody, including Agent Mark Wilson and Sanjar Mihdizadih. Unfortunately, there's no sign of either Flannigan or Emily."

"Dammit."

"The others aren't talking. We're taking them into holding and questioning them one by one. We'll see if one of them will roll on Flannigan."

"I want in on the interviews. I think I can give them a little bit of motivation to talk." Don didn't voice that he wanted to talk specifically to Mark, and get first crack at him for what he did to Charlie.

"We'll take them to FBI headquarters. We don't have room in our current facility to accommodate all of them."

There was a pause as Don restrained himself from asking about Wilson.

"Our ETA is twenty minutes."

"I'm already on my way there. I'll contact my team to meet me."

"I'll make sure Wilson is your first interview." Haldale hung up the phone before Don could say anything else.

A feral smile crossed Don's face as he hit the end button. He would ask Megan to contact David and Colby. He knew they would want to sit in on some of the interviews. But, Mark Wilson was his.

-----

"Has he said anything to anyone yet?" Don snapped to the guard standing at the door of Interview Room A.

"No, sir. We've just put him in there."

Don nodded and stared into the room, the anger inside of him boiling. He could see Mark was handcuffed to one of the chairs and staring stoically at the mirror dividing the rooms.

Colby and David were standing on either side of Don, like sentries. They had talked to each other before heading in with their boss, and had agreed that it was best not to leave him alone with the suspect.

Striding forward, Don grabbed the door handle and jerked it open. His angry footfalls caught the attention of Wilson and he looked up, his face expressionless. If Don hadn't noticed the tightening of his jaw, he would think that Agent Wilson wasn't nervous. His resolve strengthened with the image of his little brother, bruised, battered and still battling the effects of the drug, lying in a hospital bed. He approached the suspect and slammed both hands against the table, causing him to jump.

He began to question him, slowly at first. Wilson maintained his silence. As Don continued to question him, his frustration mounted, causing his voice to get harsher and harsher. With each question he asked, he walked closer and closer to the sitting agent.

As Don stood only a foot away from Wilson, David and Colby exchanged a look, assessing whether they needed to intervene.

Finally, an angry Don got right up into Wilson's face, yelling ferociously at him to give him the information that they needed.

"Where is Flannigan? We figured out everything! Do you think we're stupid, you pathetic excuse for an agent! You're supposed to protect people! What do you think you were doing? Playing hero? You were just a fool, a damn puppet for a psycho with a vendetta! Do you think you were actually going to do anything good!" Don had grabbed Wilson by the shirt, and was shaking him furiously. He brought his fist up to slam it into his face, when Colby and David grabbed him from behind.

At last, Wilson started to crack and he yelled back. "You have no idea what you're talking about! Don't you ever get tired or putting the same people in jail over and over again! Nothing ever changes! You put them in and a year, maybe two, later the system lets them out again. We work our butts off to catch their leaders, and within days, DAYS, someone else is there to take their place! What kind of justice system is that? It doesn't work! This… this would have wiped the city clean of all of the garbage."

"At what cost! How were you going to protect the innocent people who would be infected! Do you think that they would have been saved because they were "good"! Anthrax isn't some magical potion that will spare the innocent. Everybody would have died!"

"We would have given them treatment! There are treatments available and we would have given it to those who were innocent."

"And who the hell gets to decide? You? Flannigan! And how were you going to save them? By the time they figure out what happened, by the time they showed any sign of sickness, they would have already been dead!"

"No, that's not true. The treatment works."

"Of course it works. Only if it's administered immediately after infection, BEFORE people show signs of sickness." Wilson's face drives of color at Don's statement. "What! Did Flannigan not tell you that?"

"But, but he said that there was a vaccine."

"In development. Untested. What if it didn't work! What if you couldn't give it to everybody? Do you have ANY idea what you could have done? Do you know how many people you could have killed? Do you know what the statistics are? 100 kilo's of spores would kill approximately 130,000-460,000 people within 18 square miles. On a clear, calm night, over an area like LA, you could decimate the entire population with just 100 kilos, a fraction of what you had in that warehouse!"

Sweat started to drip from Wilson's face. _That was impossible,_ he thought to himself. He couldn't believe what Don was telling him.

"Did you even LOOK at the stuff you took from Charlie? Did you look at his numbers? Or did you just believe the madman that wanted to kill everybody?"

Mark Wilson started to convulse as the facts penetrated his mind.

"I think you're beginning to realize what the hell you almost did. You would have sentenced millions of people to die. You're going in for a long, long time. You know there's no deal you can make that'll save you. But give us Flannigan. He has all the information he needs to go out and do this again. It'll take him time to process and disseminate the anthrax spores again, but once he does…" Don left the sentence unfinished, but by the look of panic on Wilson's face, he knew that he could picture it himself.

"Dr. Flannigan is at 622 Morgan's Place. It was an old research building. Flannigan leased it. He's probably there. It's where he processed the spores. Dr. Winters is there, but…"

"But what?"

"Dr. Flannigan infected her when she wouldn't tell him what he wanted to know. He… he opened up a vial with spores and left it in the room with her. It happened last night. If what you say is true… then she might already be sick."

"You better hope to some higher power that she lives, or I can't be held responsible for what Charlie will do to you. And whatever's left of you when he's done, I get next crack at."

Don strode out of the interviewing room, signaling a guard to take the disgraced agent.

David and Colby stood with Don when they were approached by Haldale and Pike, who had observed the whole interrogation from outside.

"Well done, Agent Eppes. We'll take it from here."

Don shook his head. "I want to be there when you get Emily. Charlie… Charlie would have wanted me to."

"If Flannigan did, indeed, process the spores there and opened a vial containing those spores, it's too dangerous for you to be on the scene." Haldale informed him.

"I want to be there." Don's stance was firm, his expression resolute.

Haldale and Pike exchanged a look, similar to one that they had shared in the Eppes' home several days ago.

"Fine, but you must follow exactly what we tell you. No argument. No heroics."

Don nodded and turned to David and Colby. "Continue with the interviews. Find out everything that you can. I want this case air tight when it goes to court."

David and Colby both nodded, their expressions stern. There was no way that any one of those in custody would get out of this, free and clear, without any prison time.

Don followed the two NSA personnel out the door, with every confidence that his team would slam the doors on those people who threatened the city, and make sure that those doors were locked up tightly.

-----

_A/N: We're very, very close to the end. I hope you enjoyed the latest installment. As always, comments, reviews and suggestions are appreciated! Thanks so much for reading!_


	17. Chapter 17

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Emily lay on the floor, exhausted. She had cried until her breath had come out in racking sobs. She wasn't sure how long it had been since the vial had been opened, but she knew it was only a matter of time. Now, she lay spent on the floor, with scenes from her life flashing before her eyes.

She wished she had done so many other things. She had always been so focused on her work, and what she did at the CDC and for the NSA, that she hardly ever got to really live. She had finished school at an early age and had received her second PhD before she had even hit 24. Even though she loved her work, she really wished that there had been something else. Someone else.

Her breath hitched as she thought of Charlie. She had known him for 8 years and she only managed to see him once or twice a year. And yet, he had been the one that had discovered that she was missing, who got people, his brother even, to look for her, and now he had been attacked and was possibly dead. She would never get the chance to thank him for trying, for being a good friend and how great it was to have him in her life.

She heard a commotion from outside of the room, a lot of shouting, pounding footsteps and suddenly loud bangs that sounded unmistakably like gunfire. _What was going on? What was happening? Who was shot?_ Terrified, she wanted to keep silent but a part of her hoped that it was someone who had come to find her. Taking a risk because she did not have anything to lose anyway, she started screaming as loudly as her dry throat would allow.

"Help! Help! Somebody help! My name is Emily Winters and I've been kidnapped! Do NOT open the door! Please contact someone from the CDC or the NSA! There are deadly biological agents in the air! I repeat there are deadly biological agents in this room! Do NOT open the door!"

She wanted so much to get out of this small, cramped space, but she didn't want to jeopardize anybody's health by having them burst in and become infected themselves.

She was about to continue yelling when the door started to open. "NO! NO! You cannot open the door. There's a deadly pathogen in the air and if you inhale it, you'll get infected! Please, call the NSA or CDC and they can send people to get me."

The door continued to open and a person wearing a suit similar to her captor's entered, except that this suit was orange with the letters NSA clearly written across the front.

Her limbs sagged with relief.

"Emily, it's Don. We're going to take you now. We're going to quarantine you and get you decontaminated to make sure that there are no spores that can be released from your person. They said that they're going to give you medication. Are you feeling sick at all?"

"DON! Charlie? Is he okay? That psycho that took me told me that he was hurt! Is he alright!"

Don stared at the slight woman, huddled on the floor with blood caked in her hair, bruises on her face and her limbs bound and marveled that even with all of that, the first thing that she would ask about was his brother.

"He's alright. I promise. He'll be so glad to see you. The medical team is behind me. They're going to take care of you."

"Thank goodness he's alright. I was so scared. That man said that he was…"

"He's fine." The medical team rushed passed him, fully protected. He let them do their job and went back out where the shooting had taken place.

The NSA team, lead by Haldale, had surrounded the old research facility and entered stealthily. They had managed to catch Flannigan unaware and had ordered him to surrender. Flannigan, however, had gone beyond the precipice of sanity, and had attempted to escape and take down as many agents as he could. Don had been at the back, flanking the rear, but had watched as the other agents reacted immediately to the threat and shot the jaded scientist.

Don looked down. Flannigan lay dead on the floor, lying beside a canister that he could only assume were materials used to help process the anthrax. Next to his hand was a semi-automatic weapon. Disgusted Don turned away from him, thinking that even though Flannigan had said that he was fighting against the gangsters and convicts he so loathed, he was really just one of them.

Haldale and Pike met him at the front of the building. "I found Emily. She's okay. She doesn't seem to be displaying any symptoms. I think we found her in time."

Haldale nodded, although the movement could not really be seen because of the awkward biohazard gear. "They're going to put her on IV Ciprofloxacin. It's the most effective treatment against inhalation anthrax. They're taking her to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for treatment and observation."

"You did an excellent job, Agent Eppes. You kept your composure throughout this time, even when your brother was injured, and your management of your team was impressive," Pike commended him.

"Thank you. I'm just glad that everything turned out well."

"Yes. You know, if you ever think of leaving the FBI for the NSA, we would be happy to have you," Haldale offered.

Don was flattered, but shook his head. "Thank you, but I don't think I'll take you up on that offer any time in the future. I like where I am. I like my team. They were instrumental in figuring all of this out. And, of course, there's Charlie."

Nodding their understanding, they shook hands and Don made his way to the decontamination station in order to remove the gear and head out to the hospital to tell his brother the wonderful news.

-----

_A/N: Yay! Emily's been found, the bad guys have been captured or taken down and we are ready for the conclusion! I hope that you have been enjoying the story. Hopefully all of the action was suspenseful. I have never written anything of this magnitude before and this is my first foray into action/adventure/mystery so hopefully it was to your liking. As always, comments, reviews and suggestions are always appreciated! Thanks._


	18. Chapter 18

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Don left the old research facility and headed to the hospital. As he drove, he took out his cell phone and called the office, to update his team on what had happened. He was transferred to his division where Megan picked up the phone.

"We got her, Megan. Emily is fine and is showing no symptoms from the anthrax. They're giving her the treatment right now and sending her to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. I'm on my way there now to see Charlie and tell him what happened."

"What about Flannigan?"

"He was killed in the shootout. He decided that trying to run away and shoot at the agents was a better alternative then surrendering. What's going on over there with the interviews?"

"Colby and David are still at it. I've sat in on a few, but needed a break. A few of the people we've questioned are naming names, trying to get a lighter sentence. The DA is giving some deals but all of them are guaranteed some jail time. This whole thing goes far deeper than we could have expected. It seems that several high ranking political figured were involved with Flannigan's operation."

"I want to say I'm surprised, but I'm really not. It's disturbing how quickly some people will jump on a band wagon promising instant results. They should know by now that the system doesn't work that way, mostly because the world doesn't. There are no easy solutions."

"Yeah, tell me about it. We're continuing to interview people and are making note of all of the names being given, tracking them down and starting investigations on each one."

"Good work, Megan. Tell the boys, too. Everyone did a great job."

"You, too, Don. Tell Charlie we said hello."

"Will do."

Don had arrived at the hospital and made his way to Charlie's room. As he approached, he could hear his father's voice and the hoarse voice of his brother's.

Stopping inside of the doorway, he looked in on them. Charlie was sitting up and talking, although his voice was gravelly and his sentences rather short. Overall, he looked well as he waved his hands around, trying to explain something to his father. Watching the two men interact, Don could not stop the feelings of pleasure and triumph that engulfed him.

Smiling, he sauntered in and greeted his father and brother.

"Good to see you up, Charlie."

Charlie's upturned face, full of hope, looked at Don, waiting for news of Emily.

Don gave him a huge grin and said, "We got them, Charlie. Emily is fine. Flannigan purposefully infected her but she's been given medication and everyone is certain that she will have no lasting effects."

Charlie stared at him with shock, mixed with relief. "But she's alright, though, right? She's not displaying any symptoms?"

"Not a one, Buddy. And she asked about you."

"She did?"

"Yeah, when I went in to get her. You were the first thing she asked about."

Charlie's face lit up at that announcement, while Alan's face clouded over.

"What do you mean infected her? Infected her with what?"

Don and Charlie looked at each other, realizing that they had inadvertently let information slip.

Cursing himself for his carelessness, Don said, "Don't worry about it, Dad. It doesn't matter anymore. I promise. Everything's fine."

Alan looked doubtful but let it go, too happy to have his boys with him, alive, alert and well.

"Where is she now?" Charlie asked.

"They're taking her here, actually."

"Do you know what floor?"

"I'm not sure but I can ask."

Alan immediately noticed the interest of his younger son and smiled, unable to contain his glee. Maybe he could do a little match-making!

"So, when are they going to spring you?"

"They're keeping me for observation, but didn't give me a specific time frame. They want to make sure I don't display any of those side-effects from the drugs."

"How_ are_ you feeling?"

"Better now that I know that everything is okay. Everything is okay, right Don?"

"Of course, would I lie to you?" Don asked.

"Never. We're a team." Charlie said, grinning from each to ear.

Don said nothing, but the dancing twinkle is his eyes spoke volumes.

-----

Emily sat on a bed in one of the rooms in the ER. She had gone through the decontamination process before they had brought her to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. As anthrax is not transmissible from person to person, they did not need to keep her under quarantine. They had explained to her that they just wanted to make sure that she didn't have any spores on her person.

She understood and appreciated their concern. They had immediately put her on the IV Ciprofloxacin and was told that she would be on it for at least three days.

She sat on the bed, waiting for one of the nurses or an orderly to come and transport her to a bed in one of the units, when she heard footsteps coming towards her room.

A moment later two haggard but overjoyed faces appeared in the doorway.

"Mom and Dad! What are you doing here?"

"Someone called us in the Bahamas and they told us. Oh, Emily, my baby! What have they done to you?" Her mother rushed to her bedside, taking her daughter in her arms. She rocked her, gently rubbing her back in soothing circles.

Her father approached more cautiously, but Emily could see the tears that threatened to slip down his face.

"Dad," Emily, choking on her emotions, reached out her hand for his. He crossed the distance between them quickly and grabbed her hand, picking it up and pressing it to his lips.

"My little Em. We were so worried about you. We're glad to have you back."

"Did they tell you what happened?"

"They didn't have many details."

Emily inwardly gave a sigh of relief. She did not want her parents to know too many of the details about what had happened to her.

"I'm fine mom. Just a few bruises, dehydration and other stuff."

Emily's mother continued to hold her as she cried tears of relief. Emily's father, continuing to clutch her hand to his chest, looked at the IV bag on the stand beside Emily.

"What's this they have you on?"

Emily quickly looked up and saw that the bag was unmarked. "Oh, it's just something to help with the dehydration. Don't worry about it, dad." Trying to draw his attention away from the contents of the bag she said, "I'm sorry that you had to cut your vacation short."

"Nonsense. We had to be here. I'm glad that someone was able to find us. We were able to talk to Agent Eppes and he assured us that he was working hard to find you. He obviously was. We also got to meet that young man of yours." Doug Winters said, his focus back on his daughter.

"My young man?"

"Dr. Charlie Eppes. He was at the FBI office when we went to talk to his brother. He helped us post a reward for information about you. He even doubled the reward money we offered. He's very kind."

Emily could not help but feel even more grateful to Charlie. Not only had he been the one to discover her missing, helped in the investigation and gotten hurt because of her, he had offered his own money, too. Tears sprang in her eyes as she thought about the depth of his generosity and kindness.

"Do you know where he is?"

"No, I suppose he's at the university."

Emily didn't comment. She did not know how she would explain things to them without giving too much away or breaking down.

"What happened, baby?" Sheila Winters asked, her face streaked with tears but decidedly more calm.

Emily hesitated. "Mom, I'm really not ready to talk about it right now. Please?"

Sheila saw the pleading look in her daughter's eyes and could not bring herself to ask anymore. Regardless of what Emily had said, she knew that there were more things wrong with her then simple dehydration.

"Okay. There will be plenty of time to talk later. We're just glad to have you back."

Emily nodded, continuing to hug her mother.

Someone cleared their throat from the doorway. The family looked towards it when they heard, "Emily Winters?"

Emily recognized the NSA personnel right away.

"Mr. and Mrs. Winters."

"Lieutenant Pike. Thank you for everything you've done to find our daughter." Emily was startled at the familiarity her parents displayed for the two men. She caught Colonel Haldale's barely concealed warning look, so she maintained her silence.

"It was Agent Eppes and his team's fine work that brought your daughter safe and sound back to you. What little help we could provide, we were happy, to. Dr. Winters, it's good to see you. We've been told that you suffer no ill effects."

Emily nodded silently, not sure what exactly she was supposed to say.

"Mr. and Mrs. Winters, Lieutenant Pike would like to speak with you. I'll just keep your daughter company while you three talk outside." Mrs. Winters hesitantly looked at her daughter. Emily was already pulling away from her mother and nodding. Sheila took this as a sign that Doug and she should leave. Giving Emily one last hug, she followed Lieutenant Pike out of the room.

When the door closed, Colonel Haldale turned to Emily. "Dr. Winters. I cannot begin to express our delight in having you back with us, nor can I express our deep regret that you were captured to begin with. There was a leak in our department which we have successfully plugged."

Emily nodded, realizing how her position had been revealed and compromised.

"Lieutenant Pike is telling your parents that you were attacked by one of your colleagues who was in competition with you regarding your research pursuits. We're playing this in the media as an academic professor gone mad, giving into the pressure of grants and publishing. It's a little far fetched, but less bizarre and panic-inducing then the truth."

Emily didn't know what to say, so she simply nodded as her mind raced. It was unsurprising that the potential-disaster would be covered up. She was glad that she would not have to explain anything to her parents, but did not know how she would hold up to the scrutiny of her other colleagues. Shaking her head, she knew that she would simply have to deal with.

"What happened to the guy that took me? I never thought to ask."

"It was Russell Flannigan." Emily stared at him in shock. "He's dead. He was shot as he tried to escape and kill our agents."

Emily absorbed the news, feeling numb. She had assumed that whoever had taken her had been a stranger. She couldn't believe that someone she knew would do what he had done. She felt a small twinge of regret at his passing, but knew that he had been courting death when he first began his campaign to purge LA.

"And Dr. Eppes? Flannigan told me that he was attacked or hurt. Don assured me that he was fine but he didn't tell me what happened."

"Agent Mark Wilson grabbed him in the elevator at the FBI office. He injected him with a new street drug that rendered him unconscious. We suspect that it was because Dr. Eppes was getting close to either figuring out where you were or what Flannigan was planning. He woke up a few hours ago and does not seem to be suffering any side effects of the drug."

"I'm glad he's alright. I was very concerned."

Haldale smiled at the young woman. "We can arrange it so that you are in the same room with him. They're keeping him for observation."

"Thank you. I would appreciate that."

"Tell your parents that Dr. Eppes was attacked by Flannigan because he had confronted him. We'll let Dr. Eppes and his family know so they won't blow that cover."

"Lieutenant Pike should be returning with your parents soon. If you have any further questions, you know where to reach us." He paused for a moment before holding out one of his hands.

Emily reached out and shook it. Haldale held onto it for a moment and said, "We are grateful for all that you have done for the NSA, Dr. Winters. We regret this horrible tragedy." Emily gave him a tight smile, but said nothing.

A moment later, the door opened and Emily's parents entered the room again. The NSA personnel bid the trio good-bye and left the room.

Mrs. Winters sat beside her daughter, on the edge of the bed, and caressed her face. "Lieutenant Pike told us what happened. We want you to know that you don't have to tell us anything if you don't want to. Okay honey? We're just so happy to have you back."

Mr. Winters cleared his throat. "Very happy." As he looked around the room he wondered aloud, "I wonder what's taking them so long to get you a room?"

"Oh, Colonel Haldale said he was going to try and get me a room with Charlie."

"Charlie's in the hospital, too?" Mr. Winters eyed Emily sharply.

"He was attacked by Flannigan, too. Colonel Haldale said that it was because he suspected it was Flannigan who had taken me and he confronted him."

"Oh, my. That poor young man. Is he alright?"

"I think so. At least that's what Colonel Haldale said."

"Dr. Winters," A nurse interrupted their conversation. "We're ready to transfer you to a room. I understand you've requested to be with Dr. Eppes."

Emily smiled and nodded.

"A hospital aid is coming to bring you to the room. Mr. and Mrs. Winters, if you would like to meet her there, it's room 316."

"We'll just ride up with her, if that's alright," Mrs. Winters said, not wanting to leave Emily yet.

The nurses smiled in understanding and left the room.

The Winters continued to talk as they waited, but Emily's mind drifted as she processed what Haldale had told her. The shock of what had happened to her had not fully worn off and the news about Flannigan had thrown her off even more. She still couldn't believe what had happened and that she had managed to come out of it alive.

She could not help but notice how her parents constantly touched her, as if to reassure themselves that she was still there. She could only imagine the terror that had gripped them when they had found out that she was missing.

As she sat in the ER, guarded on both sides by her parents, she began to think about her life, the career path she had taken, and the choices she had made. Perhaps the situation with Flannigan had been a wake-up call.

Her musings were interrupted by the hospital aid bringing in a different bed to transport her. As she switched beds and shifted her IV stand, she couldn't help but think that perhaps it was time to do something else with her life.

-----

_A/N: I think that there's only a chapter and an epilogue left to write. If there are any glaring/visible plot holes, please let me know. Thanks again for reading!_


	19. Chapter 19

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

-----

Don sat in one of the chairs beside his brother's bed. Charlie was asleep again, having exhausted himself an hour ago. He had tried to pump Don for more information, but with their father in the room, it was difficult to convey the anything.

Don stared at the television monitor without really seeing what was on the screen. He had turned on the game when Charlie had fallen asleep and put the volume on low. The Dodgers were playing and were down 2 to 1 the last time he had bothered to look at the score.

He was still thinking about how the whole thing with Flannigan had ended. He still could not believe that a professor with delusions of grandeur had concocted such a foolish plan and had expected to get away with it. What was more troubling was the fact that he had almost succeeded. Had it not been for the work of two different agencies and one math genius… he cut off his thoughts abruptly, not wanting to think about the _"what if"_ scenarios.

His reflections were interrupted by the sound of squeaking wheels approaching Charlie's room. Don, instantly alert, stood up and his hand reached automatically for his weapon. Alan noticed his son's sudden movement and stood immediately, blocking Charlie's sleeping body as best he could from the perceived threat.

The end of a hospital bed entered the room, flanked by an older couple that Don instantly recognized as Emily's parents. He quickly removed his hand from his gun and stood up to stand beside his father, telling him that it was Emily and her parents. Alan's stance relaxed.

"Mr. and Mrs. Winters; it's so good to see you. I trust that one of my team notified you when we found Emily."

"Oh, yes, Agent Eppes. Agent Reeves contacted us and told us where to find Emily. Thank you so much for all of your hard work and for bringing our daughter back to us safely."

"It was our pleasure," Don said. The hospital aid finally pushed the bed all the way into the room and positioned it close to Charlie's.

"Charlie's sleeping right now. If you want, I could wake him up," Alan was loathed to do it, but thought that he should offer.

"No, he needs his rest." Mrs. Winters approached Charlie's bed and brushed her hand through the young man's curls. She leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead whispering words of gratitude and apology.

"How are you feeling, Emily?" Alan took in the bruises on her face, the fatigue showing plainly in her eyes and the white bandage on the left side of her head.

"Like I've been hit by a truck," she said. "How's Charlie doing?"

"He's alright. Just resting. So you two will be sharing a room?"

"Yeah. I figured that I could poke him every so often. He doesn't snore does he?"

"Like a chainsaw," Don joked.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Great. Someone should have warned me."

"You've raised two wonderful boys, Mr. Eppes."

"Please, call me Alan."

"Sorry, I forgot to introduce everybody."

"That's alright, Emily. I'm Doug Winters and my wife, Sheila."

"I'm very proud of my sons. They gave me so much grief growing up," Alan silenced Don's indignant glare with a raise of his eyebrow. "But they turned out alright."

"More than alright," Mrs. Winters said. She was still standing beside Charlie's bed, gently stroking his brow.

"Emily's a wonderful young woman as well."

"Yes, she is. She's been nothing but a joy. This thing that's happened scares me to my bones. I'm afraid that I always thought her job as a professor was one of the safest you could have."

Alan nodded his head in sympathy. "I completely understand. Try having a son in the FBI and the other one who's supposed to be a mathematics professor, consulting for him."

"That must be very difficult. But our Emily has never consulted for anyone."

Emily shot both men a warning look.

Don cleared his throat, "Yes. But, you know, no job is without its risks. Actually, no one is without risk. Anything can happen on any given day."

"This is true. Still, I can't believe that it did happen." Mrs. Winters said, as she made her way back to her daughter's side.

Doug Winters asked about the reward money. "Is there anyone who could claim it?"

"No, I don't think so. It was really the combined effort of a number of people," Don said, thinking of everyone that had been involved on the takedown of the psychopath.

"Well, then your team should get it, Agent Eppes. They obviously worked hard, and, well, Charlie, too. Although most of it is his own money."

Don shook his head. "No, it's what we do. Money isn't why we do it. You keep it; finish that vacation that you started."

"That's very kind of you. Emily, are you alright?" Mr. Winters had noticed Emily had been rubbing her eyes for the last few minutes.

"I'm just tired. I think the adrenaline rush is finally starting to die out. I think I'm just going to close my eyes."

"Yes, dear, you rest. We'll be here when you wake up."

Emily gave a sleepy smile. Content in the knowledge that she was safe, she let oblivion claim her.

-----

As Emily and Charlie slept, Alan and the Winters talked, sharing stories about their children.

Don headed back to the office to talk to his team and to get an update about the case.

Several hours later, Charlie woke up groggily. He looked over and saw Emily's sleeping form in the bed next to his. In the moonlight, he could see the bruises on her face, and the gauze on her head. His heart ached as he thought of what she must have had to endure and he regretted that he hadn't been able to find her sooner.

She stirred in her sleep, giving a low moan as she tried to shift her position.

Charlie thought about pressing the call button for a nurse when Emily's eyes opened. She seemed disoriented for a moment and he watched as her emotions played across her face - first fear, then confusion and finally realization of where she was. It pained him to see the momentary panic on her face before she realized that she was safe. He hoped that in time, it would fade.

"Emily?"

She turned her head slowly and looked at him. "Charlie. You're awake. I'm so glad. How are you doing?"

"How am _I _doing? I'm fine. How about you?"

"I'm not going to lie and say everything is fine, but it could have been a lot worse. Your brother found me in time. Thank you so much…"

"You don't have to thank me. I'm just so sorry that I didn't find you sooner, or that I didn't check up on you when you were late. I should have known. You're never late."

"Charlie, don't blame yourself. It was never your fault. If it hadn't been for you, they probably wouldn't have found me. I owe you my life." She reached out her hand across the bed railing; Charlie did the same. They were too far to clasp hands, but their fingertips touched and even that small contact was all that was needed.

Emily started to cry. "Charlie, I'm so sorry that you were hurt. I never meant for any of this to happen."

"Now who's blaming themselves? Emily, it's not your fault. You never asked for this to happen to you. I wish that it hadn't happened to you. I'm so sorry."

Emily started sobbing even harder, unable to hold onto her control. Charlie sat up, pushed down the bedrail and struggled to get to his feet, dragging the IV stand behind him.

Going on instinct, he helped Emily sit up and then wrapped his arms around her as she wept.

"Shhhh… you're safe now. He can't hurt you anymore. Shhh…" He continued to murmur soft words of comfort to her as he swayed back and forth.

He heard footsteps coming from the doorway, but he ignored them as he continued to hold his friend.

"Is she alright?" It was one of the nurses. "Our monitors indicated that her respiratory and pulse rates were up."

Charlie just shook his head. The woman watched as the curly haired man held her distraught patient and realized that he could handle the situation much better than she could.

"If she needs anything, just push the call button."

Charlie continued to hold her until her tears subsided. He gently ran his hand through her hair, brushing it off of her face and making sure not to touch the bandage.

"It's going to be alright, Emily. You're going to be alright."

She hiccoughed a moment and then took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Sorry for slobbering all over you."

Charlie smiled. "I'm not."

Emily suddenly looked up sharply. "What are you doing out of bed? Get back in! I can't catch you if you fall."

"Emily, I'm fine. I swear. They're just keeping me for observation. I'm more worried about you."

She continued to gently prod him back towards his bed. Rather than argue, Charlie went towards his bed and began to move it closer to her's.

"What are you doing? You're going to hurt yourself!"

Charlie ignored her admonishments, and once the beds were touching, he grabbed the box of tissues from the nightstand, handed it to Emily and got back into his bed.

"Thanks," Emily said, already grabbing a handful and wiping her eyes and blowing her nose. "Sorry."

"Don't be. I'd be more surprised if you didn't have any reaction at all. You have to stop apologizing, Emily."

"Sor… I'll try." She said, sheepishly.

"Is everything alright?" Larry asked, as he walked through the door carrying a potted plant. Amita followed behind him.

"Yeah, just having a mini-breakdown. Don't worry, the waterworks display is over," Emily joked.

Larry gave a soft laugh and presented the plant to her. "It's a Peace Lily, Emily. I hope you like it. Flowers are so ephemeral; I thought you might like this flowering plant better."

"That's so thoughtful of you, Larry. Thanks. I love plants."

"Hey, where's my plant?" Charlie asked, feigning a whine.

"I've seen what you do to plants, Charles. They rarely survive longer than a month. I was not taking my chances. Amita brought you chocolate."

Amita walked around Emily's bed, over to Charlie's, noticing how close together they were.

"Thanks, Amita."

"I'm so happy to see you back with us, Emily. You look a little worse for wear."

"I've definitely seen better days, Larry. But, I'm very glad to be here, bruises and all."

"I can't believe that Flannigan would do such a thing. I knew he was ambitious and a bit of an opportunist, but never in my wild imaginings did I think he was capable of what he had done to you. Over a grant, no less."

Charlie and Emily shared a quiet look. Larry and Amita obviously didn't know the half of it. "Sometimes people do crazy things, Larry, for reasons that some of us may never understand."

"How are things at school, Larry? Amita?"

"Well, everyone is pretty shocked. The departments are still reeling from the scandal," Amita said.

"Yes, there has been a lot of gossip and speculation about what had happened and why."

"Some people are talking about him as if he was some gunslinger going down in a hail of gunfire," Amita recalled.

"Some people are idiots," Charlie said matter-of-factly, taking Emily's hand in his and giving it a supportive squeeze.

"Yes, of course," Larry put in quickly.

After a brief pause, Larry asked, "So what are your plans once they discharge you from the hospital, Emily?"

"I'm not sure."

"Aren't you going back to Georgia?" Amita asked.

"Probably," she said, albeit hesitantly.

"We should have another get together at our place. Your parents can come, too, and they can meet all of the people that helped find you."

"Yeah, I think that they would like that." Emily said, head bent, plucking at her blankets.

"What's wrong, Emily?"

"It's funny that you guys asked about what I'm going to do next. I was thinking about it, especially after Don found me. I'm not sure I want to go back to Georgia. There are some things that I would like to do. I've been sort of holed up at the CDC for a long time and, maybe it's time for a change of scenery."

"Really? Where were you thinking of going?" Charlie asked, nonchalantly. He pictured her moving across the world, possibly going the way of Susan Berry.

"Actually, I sort of thought, what with Flannigan gone, that there might be an opening here at CalSci."

Charlie's face lit up, as did Larry's, seeing his friend and colleague's jubilant expression.

"I'm sure they would take you, with your credentials and everything."

"I'm just not sure because… well, the reason Dr. Flannigan is no longer at CalSci is because…"

"Is because he was crazy, not because of you." Charlie said vehemently.

"Beyond your credentials, Emily, is the fact that you have a lot to give to our academic community. You would be a breath of fresh air in a department that has been stifling for years under Russell's leadership. They would be lucky to have you." Larry said.

"It's just a thought. I haven't completely decided yet."

Amita had been listening silently to the exchange when she abruptly stood up from her chair and told them that she had to make a telephone call.

Puzzled, Charlie looked at Larry for an explanation.

"Today is the deadline for her to contact Harvard about the job offer." Charlie nodded, but showed no sadness about the news.

"Do you know what her decision is?" Emily asked.

Larry shook his head.

The three continued their conversation until they noticed Emily's eyes beginning to droop. Charlie asked Larry to adjust the bed so that she was lying flat again, and then he rearranged her pillows and tucked her in. He brushed his hand against her cheek and he watched the steady rise and fall of her chest as she slept.

When Larry was sure that Emily was asleep he asked, "How is she coping, Charles"?

"I think it finally hit her just before you guys came in. But, with time she will be fine. She's a strong person."

"Yes, I'm sure she is. And she has people who will stand with her through it all. What do you think of her coming to CalSci?"

As Charlie gazed down at the young woman, he felt his heart constrict a little at the thought of her leaving. "I think I would really like it if she stayed."

-----

_A/N: Almost done. The epilogue will be posted shortly!_


	20. Epilogue

**Beware the Air**

_Summary: When a threat to national security is made, the Eppes' brothers are enlisted to help find the culprits before it is too late._

_Disclaimer: NUMB3RS is the creation of Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci and I have no legal rights to the characters and their backgrounds._

_A/N: There is a major spoiler for the Episode "Running Man" in the dialogue between Emily and Charlie. You have been warned._

-----

Several months had passed since Emily's abduction. The school year was almost over and Charlie sat in his office, grading final exam papers. He looked up at the soft knock on his door.

"Hey Charlie. Are you ready to go?"

"Emily, yeah, hey, I'm just finishing up here. I have two more papers to grade and then we can head out."

"I'm going to start calling you the Eternally Late Dr. Eppes, soon, except that it's far too many syllables."

"How did the unpacking go?"

"All finished. I put up the last books in my office today."

Charlie looked up at his friend, who was pulling the darts off of his billiards board. She looked good, completely recovered from her ordeal with Flannigan. He marveled a little at her resilience.

He turned his attention back to his papers before she noticed him staring.

"How's the marking going?"

"Horribly. For some reason, my students are having difficulty with the last problem set on the exam. Over half of them have gotten it completely wrong."

Emily threw the last of the darts and walked over to Charlie. She picked up one of the papers in the pile of marked tests. Flipping through it she noted, "Your students don't seem to be grasping the intricacies behind logistic regression." After a moment's pause, she asked, "Charlie, did you notice that you spelled collinear with only one 'l'?"

"It only has one 'l' Emily," Charlie said without looking up.

"No, Charlie, it has two."

He gave her a speculative look and said, "Let me see that." Taking the proffered paper, he skimmed it to find the supposed error. "No, I'm sure it has one 'l'."

Emily suppressed her grin. Spelling was definitely not one of Charlie's strong suits.

He put down the paper and said, "Spelling isn't the issue here, anyway. I can't believe how abysmally they're doing. It's just an analysis of binary data."

"You know, sometimes it's hard for people to think in 0's and 1's. They can't get passed the noise of the other numbers."

Charlie just shook his head in confusion, missing Emily's teasing tone. She watched as he quickly skimmed over the last two exams.

"All done," he said, writing a 77 on the front cover of the last paper. He grabbed his backpack off of the floor and put his laptop with several other papers inside.

"Well it's about time. You know, I was thinking of getting someone in the engineering department to rig a big clock for me that I could hang around your neck. I would make sure it had a remote control so I could give you warnings at ten minute intervals, letting you know that you were running behind."

Charlie laughed, "One day, I'm going to surprise you and be early!"

As they walked across the campus, a soft breeze blew that caused her hair to flutter around her face. Charlie looked at her profile and saw the faint scar along her temple, a small remnant from the attack months ago.

Emily noticed his staring and put her hand to her temple. "Stop it, Charlie. I don't care. It's over."

"You never cover it. Why?"

"It's a reminder to myself."

"Of what? To be more careful?"

"That, and other things."

"Like what?" Charlie asked.

They had gotten into the car and were driving the familiar route to Charlie's home.

"That life is short and fragile. To be grateful for what I have and not take it for granted. And even though we can be at the mercy of other people's whims, that there will always be others willing to help and to protect."

She stopped at a red light and stared at Charlie's face as her eyes glistened with tears, remembering what he had done for her and what could have happened to him.

"Hey, stop that. It wasn't your fault and I didn't do anything that you wouldn't have done for me."

Emily blinked back the tears as she smiled. She was about to say something else when the car behind her honked. Looking up she saw that the light was green and put her foot to the accelerator.

When she pulled into the Eppes' driveway she saw the other vehicles already there. In a repeat of the scene many months ago, she and Charlie walked around the house, following the sounds of conversation drifting from the backyard.

Suddenly, Emily stopped and grabbed Charlie's arm.

"You never let me thank you, for doing what you did."

"There's nothing to thank me for, Emily."

Emily nodded, stepping a little closer to Charlie. "You keep saying that. But, Charlie, you risked so much for me and…"

"To be fair, I didn't know I was risking anything," Charlie said, in an attempt to lift up Emily's mood.

Emily just smiled. "I know, Charlie. But I think even if you were aware of the risks, you would have still done it."

Charlie looked away, slightly uncomfortable at her praise. Then, "Did I ever tell you about the time one of Larry's students was accused of masterminding a robbery at CalSci?"

Emily nodded, not knowing where this was leading. "He was guilty, though."

"Yeah, but Larry didn't know that at first. He told me… he told me that he would go beyond the boundaries of the observable universe to defend me if anyone ever accused me of anything. I mean, this is a little out of context, but it still applies to what happened with you."

Emily, deeply touched, reached out to Charlie, enveloping him in a hug.

Charlie closed his eyes for a moment, pushing aside the horror about what had happened, and relished the feeling of Emily's warm embrace, of having her safe and in his arms.

"When I was in that room, after Flannigan told me that you had been attacked, I was terrified for both of us, but mostly for you. I thought about all the things that I did with my life, what I had yet to do. My biggest regret was not telling you how amazing it was to have you in my life. After finding out what you did for me, I can't help but feel awed by the depth of your loyalty."

Charlie smiled into her hair and thought of his father, of his mom, and of Don. "I had really good examples."

As they pulled away from each other, Emily wiped at her tears. "Everyone's probably wondering where we are. Come on, the Eternally Late Dr. Eppes. It's Amita's last day here in California. We have to give her a proper send off."

Charlie and Emily walked the rest of the way into the backyard, which was decorated with festive streamers and a large banner reading, "Good luck at Harvard!"

The guest of honor was standing by the barbecue, talking with Alan and Larry. She caught sight of the two people by the side of the house and gave a wave.

Emily returned it enthusiastically and Charlie followed her as she went up to the young mathematician and gave her a hug.

"Congratulations on the job. I know it was a hard decision to make."

As Amita returned the hug and saw how Charlie looked at Emily, she replied, "It wasn't such a hard decision after all. It's a wonderful opportunity."

Charlie smiled warmly at Amita and reached down for a hug of his own. "You'll do great there. But don't forget us poor shmucks at CalSci."

Amita laughed. "Never. This is home. Three years will fly by and I'll be back, here."

"Can't keep you away for long, huh?" Charlie stepped back from her and resumed his place beside Emily.

"I've always said that there is an invisible gravitational force pulling at people, drawing them inexorably to California. I have a theory that involves Plate Tectonics," Larry interjected.

"You'll have to share that with us at a later time, Larry. I'm starving. How are the burgers coming, Dad?"

"I've burned a few, but most of them are coming out alright."

"Have you tried the equation that I use?"

"Charlie, don't start with that."

Emily ignored Charlie's explanation of his equation and looked on in amusement as Alan tried to wrestle the tongs and flipper away from Charlie.

"Emily, how's it going? All settled in yet?"

At the sound of the familiar voice from behind her, Emily whirled around and looked up at the smiling face of Don Eppes.

"Yes, finally. I unpacked the last box at my place yesterday and finished putting my books up at the office this morning. You never know how much stuff you actually own until you have to pack and unpack things."

"I'm glad that you're back in California. The CDC didn't take it too badly when you left?"

Emily dropped her voice to a whisper, "They understood, after what had happened. Anyway, my project was near completion and my successor is more than capable of giving it the final touches. I'm ready for a change."

"How are the professors at CalSci treating you?"

"For the most part, they've all been nice, but very cautious. I can't say that I blame them. Flannigan was their colleague and they trusted him. I think that they're still a bit shell-shocked about everything. The media certainly didn't paint a pretty picture of him."

"It's not half as bad as the truth, which is less then he deserves." There was still a hint of bitterness to Don's voice as he thought about the man and what he had intended to do LA.

Emily touched his arm and said, "But he didn't. You stopped him. None of you gave up. You, your brother or your team. It's amazing, and humbling."

Don looked down at the pretty, upturned face and smiled. "Just another day in the life of Law-Man and his band of Merry Men."

"Merry People, Don."

Don gave a soft chuckle.

"What's so funny over there?"

"Nothing, Math Geek. We're just talking." Don gave Emily a wink and went off in search of another drink.

Charlie called after his brother, "Math Geek! Who are you calling Math Geek?"

"At least it's not nerd, Charlie." David said, covering his smirk with his burger.

Emily just laughed at Charlie's indignant expression.

Alan turned to her, "Would you like something to eat? I've got burgers, sausages and steak." He had managed to take back control of the grill from his youngest son.

"A burger sounds lovely, thanks. Everything looks delicious." She shot Charlie a pointed look.

"Yeah, everything's great, Dad. Thanks for all of your help."

Alan had noticed the reproving look Emily had given Charlie, and the latter's immediate reaction. He had to smile.

Watching the two stand, side by side, he had to marvel at the circumstances that had brought them to this moment. Even though both of his boys were very tight lipped with details, he knew that whatever had happened left its mark on both of them.

Don dropped by more frequently, just to say hello to his younger brother, and although they still teased each other mercilessly, there was an underlying current of love and affection that was evident, more so than it had ever been in their rocky relationship.

For Charlie's part, he seemed more in the moment, less easily absorbed by the numbers. He still got lost in them, he was still Charlie after all, but he came up for air much more regularly and, every so often, he would stop beside him when he was sitting in his chair reading the paper, or standing in the garden tending to Margaret's flowers, and touch his arm, or squeeze his shoulder.

When Amita had announced that she was taking the job at Harvard he was worried that his youngest son would slip back into his P vs. NP obsession, but he hadn't. Instead he had revealed to him that Emily was applying for a position at CalSci. When she had received and accepted the post, he had been hopeful that something would happen between the two, but so far, they seemed content to remain friends.

He remembered the conversation he had had with Emily when she had moved to California last month.

"Mr. Eppes, I never told you how grateful I am for what you and your family did for me. I know you're curious as to what happened, and I'm even more thankful that you're not pushing us all for details. I just wanted to say that you should be proud of your boys. I have never met two more admiral people in my life." She had paused for a moment to look at him. "Well, three people."

He had been deeply touched by her sentiment, and had asked, tentatively, why she decided to move to California. She seemed to have sensed the gentle prodding and replied simply, "It's where I want to be."

-----

The barbecue was winding down as the guests sat in chairs around the backyard, the darkening sky painted with deep reds and oranges.

Emily was sitting with Amita, discussing her living arrangements in Massachusetts and what courses she was expected to teach.

Charlie sat across from them, tuning out their conversation. His gaze fell on Emily and he thought of what it was like having her in California, working at the same institution. He could not hold back the feeling of contentment and _rightness _that having her near, gave him.

He tried not to overanalyze and over-think things as he had done with Amita. He was afraid that that way lead to statistical improbabilities, and he didn't want that to happen, not with her. She had, somehow, become an integral part of his life, and he could not imagine what it would be like if their relationship devolved into uncomfortable awkwardness.

"What's going on in that head of yours, Buddy?"

Don took the empty chair beside his brother and handed him a beer.

"Thanks, Don. Um, I was just thinking."

"Yeah, I couldn't help but notice the big wrinkle in your forehead."

"I don't have wrinkles. You have wrinkles."

Don's eyes crinkled as he laughed. "We're both getting old. What's on your mind?"

"Just thinking about risks, possibilities and probabilities."

"Math? You're thinking about math? You should be relaxing. The school year is over, you're full of good food and alcohol and you're surrounded by all of your friends."

Charlie was amused by Don's indignant lecture. "Not math, Don. Just… possibilities."

Don looked over at the two ladies sitting across from them, and his eyes narrowed speculatively on one in particular. He put the beer bottle up to his lips and took a long pull. "Oh, yeah?"

Charlie nodded as he took a much smaller sip of the beer in his hands.

"What did you come up with?"

"Nothing yet."

Don gave his brother a level look. "I'll give you some of my patented big brother advice. It's worth the risk, whatever the probabilities, possibilities, equations or statistics say. It's worth it."

"Patented brother advice, eh?"

Don gave Charlie a reassuring look and, with raised eyebrows, pointed towards the two women. "Trust me."

Charlie nodded and put down his beer. He walked over to Emily and Amita who were sharing a laugh about the horrors of packing up their lives into little boxes. Emily looked up as a familiar shadow fell across the deck.

"Hey, Charlie. We were just talking about compartmentalizing our lives in properly labeled cardboard boxes."

"Scary thought. I don't want to think about what it would be like to move all of the stuff in this house. I've got over thirty years worth of stuff stacked in there."

Amita seemed to sense that Charlie wanted to talk to Emily alone. It was with some regret that she stood and told them she was going to get another drink. Emily smiled at her as she left and Charlie took the now empty seat.

"Are you having a good time?" He asked her.

"Of course. It's always fun being in the Eppes' home. You guys sure know how to throw a good party."

"Dad's very organized. I just pretend." Emily laughed, knowing it was absolutely true.

"So what are you doing now that you're all unpacked?"

"I'm teaching a course for the summer session so I'm just prepping my lecture notes. It's been a long time since I had to teach a whole class by myself. I want to make sure I'm ready for it. Are you teaching this summer?"

"No, definitely not. I'm going to work on my Cognitive Emergence work now that I've done all of my exams. There's a conference in Newark in late July that I'm attending. If Don has any cases that he needs my help in, that'll occupy some of my time, too. And I have this special project that I've been meaning to get to for some time."

"Special project? I'm intrigued."

Charlie smiled and he felt that fluttering again in his stomach that he had had months ago. Preparing to take the leap he took her hands in his and asked, "Yeah, I've wanted to start on it for ages now. Longer than I realized, actually. I was thinking I would start slowly and build it up from there."

Emily looked at Charlie in shock. Her mouth dried and her heart started to beat a little faster as she waited for what Charlie had to say next.

"I was thinking maybe we could have dinner sometime, someplace nice."

"Dinner? That sounds nice."

"Or we could maybe go dancing. But, I'm a really horrible dancer." Charlie confessed.

"I know. I've seen you." She couldn't help the smile that blossomed on her face. "We went to that party in Miami, at the end of one of the conferences there. You had had too much to drink and there was music. It was really funny to watch actually."

Charlie chuckled. "I remember it. Well, vaguely at least. You danced, too!"

"Well, I couldn't have you looking like an idiot alone. I'm not a very good dancer, either. I fell, like, three times. But that could have been because you were swinging me around."

"Is that a yes to dinner?"

"As long as we can talk about math or any other thing that comes to mind."

Staring into her laughing eyes, he reached out and touched her face lightly. "Whatever you want."

-----

_A/N: I can't believe it. I actually finished it! I know this entry is quite long for an epilogue, but there were so many things that I wanted to cover in it. I hope none of you minded the romance bit with Charlie and Emily. As I had said in an earlier chapter, it was never my intention to hook them up, but she took on a life of her own and I could do nothing but let their story play out. I hope you liked the story and please, drop a review to let me know if you enjoyed it, hated it, thought it was too long, or there were some gaps in the plot that I completely overlooked. Thanks so much for reading and until next time! Lu_


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